How to Stop Mouth Breathing at Night: A Step-by-Step Guide

To stop mouth breathing at night, deal with the reason first. Most people breathe through the mouth in their sleep because the nose is blocked, so start by clearing it with saline rinses or pharmacy allergy treatment. Then sleep on your side, try a nasal strip, and only consider mouth tape once your nose is reliably clear.

Below: why it happens, how to tell, a step-by-step order that puts the safest fixes first, and the signs that mean you should see a GP or doctor.

Why do I breathe through my mouth when I sleep?

Your nose is the default route at night. In a small sleep lab study, Fitzpatrick and colleagues found that healthy adults with normal noses breathe almost exclusively through the nose while asleep. When the 12 volunteers were made to breathe through the mouth, upper airway resistance during sleep was more than twice as high, and pauses and dips in breathing became far more frequent.

So sleeping with your mouth open is usually a workaround. As the Cleveland Clinic puts it, most people mouth breathe because they cannot get enough air in through the nose.

The sleep apnoea link matters. In a 2022 study by Su and colleagues, 60 people with obstructive sleep apnoea spent 96.7% of their sleep with the mouth open, against 26.7% for 15 healthy controls. Some mouth opening is normal, but heavy night-time mouth breathing can go with a sleep disorder.

Why have I suddenly started mouth breathing at night?

A sudden change usually has a new cause. The NHS page on non-allergic rhinitis lists triggers people miss: weather and humidity changes, smoke, alcohol, pregnancy, medicines such as beta blockers, aspirin and ibuprofen, and using decongestant spray for longer than the packet says. A new pet, a damp bedroom or hay fever season can do the same through allergic rhinitis.

How can you tell if you breathe through your mouth at night?

The Sleep Foundation lists the usual clues: waking with a dry mouth or sore throat, morning bad breath, cracked lips, a hoarse voice, snoring, broken sleep and morning headaches. A partner is the best witness, so ask whether your mouth hangs open and whether your breathing ever pauses.

Then try a simple check while awake and calm: close your lips and breathe gently through your nose for a few minutes. If that is easy, position or habit is the likely cause. If you feel short of air, start with your nose.

How to stop mouth breathing at night: a step-by-step order

Each step is safer than the one after it. Change one thing at a time and give it a week or two.

Step 1: Check for warning signs

If your breathing stops and starts in your sleep, you gasp or choke, or you are very tired during the day, go to the GP section below first. None of the products here treat sleep apnoea.

Step 2: Clear and treat your nose

• Salt water rinses. The NHS describes mixing a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda into a pint of cooled boiled water, then sniffing a little into one nostril at a time over a sink, up to three times a day. Homemade washes are not suitable for children.
• Pharmacy treatments. A pharmacist can advise on antihistamines, steroid nasal sprays and salt water sprays.
• Decongestants, briefly. The NHS guide to decongestants says sprays and drops should not be used for more than 5 days, because longer use can make stuffiness worse. They are not for children under 6. Ask first if you are pregnant, take other medicines or have a long-term condition.
• A less allergenic bedroom. Wash bedding at 60°C or above, keep pets out of the bedroom and deal with damp.

Step 3: Change how you sleep

The NHS advice on snoring suggests sleeping on your side, with a tennis ball stitched to the back of your sleepwear or a bed wedge to stop you rolling over, and avoiding smoking, too much alcohol and sleeping pills. As our guide on how to get more deep sleep explains, alcohol also disrupts the second half of the night.

Step 4: Open the nose with a nasal strip

The NHS lists strips that hold your nose open as a treatment when snoring comes from blocked or narrow airways in the nose. Keep expectations realistic: a 2016 review of 14 studies by Camacho and colleagues found nasal dilators improved nasal breathing but did not improve sleep apnoea measures or the snoring index in people with sleep apnoea. Peak Airflow nasal strips are drug-free strips that lift the sides of the nose open, at £13.99 for 30 nights. Stop if the skin becomes sore.

Step 5: Only then, help the mouth stay closed

If your nose is clear and you still wake with a dry mouth, the NHS lists a chin strap or a mouth device called a vestibular shield. Mouth tape is the option people ask about most, and its evidence is limited and mixed. A 2025 systematic review by Rhee and colleagues found only 10 studies with 213 people and rated all of them poor quality. Two showed improvements in sleep apnoea measures, the rest showed no difference, and some raised the risk of suffocation when the nose is blocked.

The best-known positive study, by Lee and colleagues in 2022, found fewer breathing pauses and a 47% lower snoring index in 20 mouth breathers with mild sleep apnoea after a week of tape. It had no control group, and anyone with a blocked nose had it treated with medicine and sprays first. Even there, the nose came first.

Do not use mouth tape if:

• you have suspected or diagnosed sleep apnoea, unless a sleep specialist has advised it
• your nose is blocked, from a cold, hay fever, allergies, sinus problems or a deviated septum
• you have asthma, COPD or another breathing condition, unless a doctor has advised it
• you have anxiety or panic attacks, or feel claustrophobic with your mouth covered
• you are at risk of vomiting in your sleep
• it is for a child

The Sleep Foundation's mouth taping guidance names the same groups. If none apply, use tape made for skin, test it during the day, fold one end into a tab, and skip it on any night your nose feels blocked. Stop at once if you feel short of breath or panicky. Peak Mouth Tape is a gentle, skin-safe tape at £12.99 for 30 nights: a wellness habit, not a medical treatment.

Step 6: If it keeps happening, get the cause looked at

A nose that never feels clear needs examining. The Cleveland Clinic notes that treatment depends on the cause, from allergy medicines to surgery for a deviated septum. A GP can usually spot nasal polyps by looking inside your nose, and they are first treated with steroid drops or sprays.

Can you train yourself to stop mouth breathing?

Only once the nose is clear. Practising nose breathing during the day is harmless, but there is little research showing it changes night-time breathing on its own. Exercises for the tongue and throat muscles have more evidence, mainly in sleep apnoea: a 2024 meta-analysis of 7 trials with 310 people found fewer breathing pauses and less daytime sleepiness in adults compared with sham or no exercises. The one trial in children showed no benefit, partly because fewer than half kept the exercises up. Use them with a clinician, not instead of a diagnosis.

Whether you use the Sleep Reset System or another tracker, compare weekly averages rather than single nights, and remember that wearables estimate sleep stages rather than measure them. Our guide to what a good sleep score is explains why scores differ between brands.

Mouth breathing in children

The NHS explains that enlarged adenoids can make it hard for a child to breathe through the nose, causing mouth breathing, snoring and sometimes sleep apnoea. Adenoids usually start to shrink from around age 4, and they can be removed if problems are serious. The Sleep Foundation advises seeing a doctor if a child mouth breathes and snores, especially with morning headaches, poor concentration or new bed-wetting, and urgently if a newborn sleeps with their mouth open. Never tape a child's mouth.

When to see a GP or doctor

Based on NHS guidance on sleep apnoea, snoring and rhinitis, see a GP, or your own doctor outside the UK, if:

• your breathing stops and starts while you sleep, or you gasp, snort or choke
• you snore loudly and lifestyle changes have not helped
• you always feel very tired during the day or wake with headaches
• your nose is blocked most of the time, or pharmacy treatments are not working
• you have difficulty breathing or notice a change in your sense of smell
• a child regularly mouth breathes or snores

Our guide to the Epworth Sleepiness Scale explains the questionnaire many doctors use for daytime tiredness. The NHS links untreated sleep apnoea with hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and accidents caused by tiredness, and in the UK you must not drive with confirmed sleep apnoea and excessive sleepiness until symptoms are under control.

Frequently asked questions

Why do I breathe through my mouth when I sleep?

Usually because your nose is not letting enough air through. Colds, allergies, rhinitis, nasal polyps and the shape of the nose are common causes in adults, and enlarged adenoids in children. Sleeping on your back and alcohol can make it worse. Heavy mouth breathing with loud snoring can also be a sign of sleep apnoea.

How can I stop mouth breathing at night without tape?

Start with your nose: salt water rinses and pharmacy treatment for allergies or rhinitis. Sleep on your side, cut back on alcohol and avoid sleeping pills. If your nose still feels narrow, try a nasal strip. If your nose is clear but your mouth falls open, the NHS lists a chin strap or a vestibular shield.

Can you train yourself to stop mouth breathing?

Only once your nose is clear. Daytime nose breathing practice is harmless, but there is little research showing it changes breathing during sleep. Tongue and throat exercises have better evidence, mostly in adults with sleep apnoea, where a 2024 meta-analysis found fewer breathing pauses. They work best guided by a clinician.

Is mouth breathing at night bad for you?

It is not usually serious in adults, but it can cause a dry mouth, sore throat, bad breath, snoring and broken sleep. In a small lab study, airway resistance during sleep was more than twice as high when healthy adults breathed through the mouth. It can also signal sleep apnoea, so loud snoring or pauses in breathing need checking.

Is it safe to tape your mouth shut at night?

Not for everyone. A 2025 review rated all 10 mouth taping studies as poor quality and warned of a potentially serious risk of harm. Never tape your mouth if your nose is blocked, you might have sleep apnoea, you have a breathing condition or anxiety, or for a child. Clear the nose first and test tape during the day.

Can mouth breathing be fixed permanently?

Often, if the cause can be treated. Managing allergies or rhinitis, or correcting a deviated septum, can restore easy nose breathing. Nasal polyps respond to steroid sprays or surgery but often grow back. Adenoids usually shrink with age or can be removed. Sleep apnoea needs ongoing treatment, so a GP should work out which applies to you.

This article is for general information and is not medical advice. PulseRing Pro is a wellness device, not a medical device, and does not diagnose or treat any condition. If you are worried about your health, speak to your GP or a qualified clinician.