My Child is an Open Mouth Breather: But Why?

Do you have a child that could possibly fall into the category as an “open mouth breather?” If your child’s lips are constantly apart and their mouth appears open at rest, they are considered to be open mouth breathers or have habitual open mouth posture.

Here are some reasons as to why your child may be breathing primarily out of their mouth:

• – Sinuses/Allergies: If your child has a history of sinus issues and allergies, then this could be the case for the open mouth position. When a child’s nasal passage is inflamed or stuffed up, then there is no other choice than to breathe through the mouth, as this is the only way for air to flow freely.

• – Enlarged adenoids/tonsils: Tonsils are easily seen when a child opens their mouth wide. What doesn’t meet the eye are the adenoids. If a child’s adenoids are enlarged, their overall airway becomes narrower, leaving them to force air through the mouth.

• – Sleep Apnea: Does your child have a difficult time sleeping at night? Are they restless and you can’t figure out why they can’t fall asleep as easily as your other children? Do they snore regularly? Well, they could possibly have chronic sleep issues better known as “Sleep Apnea”. This is often caused by narrow airway passages, forcing the child to breathe through their mouth during the nighttime, which ultimately becomes a learned breathing pattern all day long.

• – Chronis colds/flus: Similar to having allergies and sinus issues, chronic sicknesses can cause a child to breathe through their mouth. Nasal congestion is no joke! We all know when our nose is stuffed up, we sound like we are talking with a mouth full of marbles.

Issues That Can Come From Being an Open Mouth Breather

As you can see, there are many health related reasons as to why your child may be an open mouth breather. It’s important to seek a medical professional’s advice if you’re worried about your child’s breathing. Let’s take a look at further issues that can come from being an open mouth breather.

• – Dentition issues: The more your child’s mouth is open, the more their tongue will push forward. Slowly, after time, your child’s dentition could be affected, causing changes in their pallate and front teeth.
• – Speech Issues: When we speak, we use all of our articulators (lips, teeth, and tongue). If your child’s lips are constantly far apart because of their open mouth posture, they will have more difficulty producing certain sounds in the appropriate way. Their tongue wants to naturally move forward, often leaving children sounding like they have “lisps.”
• – Chronic Respiratory issues: Studies have shown that chronic mouth breathing can lead to further respiratory concerns. It is natural to breathe through BOTH the mouth and nose to get rid of any toxins.
• – Gum issues: Breathing through your mouth will make everything dry. Our mouths needs to stay moist to keep certain bacteria away.  Inflamed, red or swollen gums can frequently accompany children who are open mouth breathers.
• – Poor Posture: Open mouth breathing can lead to poor posture overall. Children may have to overcompensate their body positioning including their neck, jaw, back ,etc. when they are breathing through their mouth. It’s all connected!  Try this: slump your shoulders forwards, protrude your chin and neck forward and then hyper extend your neck up to lift your eyes to midline.  If you assumed this “low tone” or poor posture, then you should have felt your mouth fall open easily in this position.  Posture feeds mouth and jaw position for every person!

Want to Learn More?

If you’re not sure if your child is an open mouth breather: watch them closely. Typically, a child’s lips are far apart and you might even be able to hear them breath. There are many different causes as to why someone is an open mouth breather, as you can see above. If you would like more information regarding your child’s breathing patterns and want to nip it in the bud, give us a call today to learn more from a pediatric speech-language pathologist at Chicago Pediatric Therapy & Wellness Center. They can be reached at 773-687-9241 for a consultation!