We tryed mouth taping

Once upon a time, we had grandma’s remedies; today, we have TikTok trends: to make hair grow faster, to improve skin texture, to sleep better. Enter the mouth taping trend, the latest frontier in the obsessive pursuit of the perfect routine to become the best version of yourself. While scrolling, you might have stumbled across someone’s morning routine, starting with the removal of a patch from their mouth, usually black and of varying sizes. Apparently, sleeping with your mouth closed brings a range of benefits not only to your sleep but to your overall well-being. But let’s take it step by step. 

What is mouth taping?

What is mouth taping? Quite literally “taping your mouth”, it involves applying a piece of tape over your lips before going to bed, in order to encourage nose breathing and reduce snoring, sleep apnea, and bad breath. Some even claim it benefits digestion, improves the shape of your face (by adjusting the jawline), boosts daily energy levels, and enhances cognitive functions (especially memory). Sounds like a miracle solution. Too bad there’s no scientific evidence to back it up.

Mouth taping: unproven benefits and some risks

At present, there are no studies that prove the effectiveness of mouth taping for any of the supposed benefits listed above. At most, a 2015 study showed a reduction in snoring and fatigue in people with obstructive sleep apnea. That’s about it, especially for those without any particular breathing issues during sleep. On the flip side, taping your mouth shut overnight can lead to some risks or at the very least discomfort: difficulty breathing (especially with a deviated septum), dryness in the airways, lip irritation, or anxiety from not being able to open your mouth freely. 

We tried mouth taping and here’s what we found

Since, as mentioned, there’s no scientific proof to lean on, we went for the empirical method: we tested mouth taping ourselves. After a quick Amazon purchase, every night for two weeks before bed we applied a not-so-glamorous black tape over our mouths. The feeling is not exactly pleasant, as expected, but here are two quick tips: absolutely skip this if you have a cough (learned the hard way) and always apply a generous layer of lip balm before taping. That said, we managed to sleep without much trouble. The tape is breathable, so it doesn’t cause a suffocating sensation; it’s just a bit uncomfortable as it pulls slightly on the skin.

After sleeping, we woke up: feeling more rested? Some mornings yes, some not really. Then came arguably the worst part of the whole process: peeling off the tape. Not exactly the ideal way to start your day. And here we are, at our conclusions: during the two weeks we practiced mouth taping, we didn’t really feel our sleep had significantly improved. Some nights we slept better, others worse (once we even ripped it off mid-sleep from the discomfort), in a normal cycle we think everyone experiences. One morning we woke up feeling unusually energetic, but it’s still unclear whether the miracle tape was to thank. In short, maybe two weeks isn’t long enough, but we kept forgetting things, our jawline looks exactly the same, and we certainly didn’t wake up with breath that smelled like violets. Verdict: mouth taping isn’t for us. But hey — there are worse habits out there.