The study from Western's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Lawson Research Institute (Lawson) of St. Joseph's Health Care London and London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute (LHSCRI) also found no strong evidence of health benefits.
The trend involves placing tape over the mouth to stop mouth breathing' and instead promote breathing through the nose during sleep. Mouth taping has been recommended by many social media influencers and celebrities who claim it can lead to better sleep, enhanced oral health and anti-aging results.
"It was concerning to us that celebrities and influencers are endorsing mouth taping without scientific evidence," said Dr. Brian Rotenberg, researcher at Schulich Medicine & Dentistry, Lawson and LHSCRI. "In the language of social media influencers, it seemed a bit sus,' so we examined what science is telling us about this trend and whether or not it is safe."
Rotenberg collaborated with Jess Rhee, a Schulich Medicine & Dentistry resident who is training at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), and Dr. Elise Graham, paediatric otolaryngologist head and neck surgeon at IWK Health. Rotenberg and his team examined 86 existing scientific studies on the topic, including an in-depth review of 10 studies representing the experience of 213 patients. The team found mouth taping:
- Has no strong scientific evidence of health benefits, contradicting claims on social media.
- Can make existing sleep-disordered breathing worse by restricting airflow, putting additional stress on the respiratory system and increasing risk of suffocation when patients experience a nasal obstruction.
"Our research shows that taping the mouth shut during sleep is dangerous, especially among those who may not be aware they have sleep apnea," said Rotenberg, who is also an otolaryngologist and sleep surgeon at St. Joseph's Health Care London and LHSC. "These individuals are unknowingly making their symptoms worse and putting themselves at greater risk for serious health complications like heart disease."
Rotenberg and his team point to the importance of health research in combatting misinformation and pseudoscience.
"It's easy for misinformation to run rampant on social media; we've seen this countless times over the past few years," said Rhee. "We need to make health decisions based on strong scientific evidence. Our hope is that people stop taping their mouths during sleep and recognize it is dangerous."
