Can Braces Cause Difficulty Breathing?
The human mouth has evolved over centuries, resulting in our teeth and our tongue becoming more crowded by the reduction in size of the human jaw. This can be an aesthetic challenge, but it also compromises your breathing, which can then disrupt your sleep. Research has proven that abnormal craniofacial formation can lead to a multitude of problems such as airway obstruction, chronic mouth breathing, impaired respiration, impaired nasal breathing, sleep disorders, sleep apnea, and lifelong ill-health.
What Is Mouth Breathing?
A mouth breather is if you habitually breathe through your mouth, rather than your nose, causing issues including:
- Chronic airway irritation.
- Increased risk of tooth decay, gum disease and bad breath.
- Inadequate quality sleep, which leads to increased risk of behavioral and social problems.
- Developmental complications affecting the facial structure, jaw, bite alignment and tongue position.
You should breathe through your nose allowing the air to be warmed and moistened before entering your respiratory system. A sizable portion of the population, including children, breathe through their mouths instead.
Mouth breathing can have long-term effects, anywhere from a dry mouth to tooth decay, and sleep interruption. Studies have shown that children with breathing issues, like mouth breathing, or obstructive sleep apnea, can develop problems such as malocclusion, jaw misalignment, or craniofacial malformation.
Children who do not breathe properly can suffer from a range of problems like headaches and sleeping issues, to developmental problems with their teeth, jaw, and face. Interrupted sleep can lead to future health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease. It can impact their behavior and their ability to retain information.
How Can Braces Help with Airway Obstructions?
As we grow, the upper palate expands. With this expansion, your nasal passages also expand to promote efficient nose breathing, better sleep, and fewer illnesses. When this growth does not occur, obstructed airways are the result. The signs of obstructed airways in children may include:
- Daytime mouth breathing
- Daytime sleepiness
- Restlessness while sleeping
- Frequent awakenings
- Frequent nightmares
- Poor school performance
- Hyperactivity and/or ADHD
Teenagers with airway obstruction can benefit from oral appliances that encourage the development of their upper and lower jaws. An appliance can expand the palate and positively affect nasal and sinus passages. As the passages grow, breathing is easier.
How Can Braces Help with Sleep Apnea?
Obstructive sleep apnea can be the result of orthodontic issues. Your airway may not be blocked by issues with your throat muscles but instead by one of the following orthodontic problems:
- Tooth misalignment
- Dental arch issue
- Jaw misalignment
When an orthodontic issue is the cause of your sleep apnea, the situation requires treatment from an orthodontic specialist. They will examine you to determine the exact cause of the obstruction. An orthodontic appliance can widen or expand the upper jaw. This is an effective treatment because expanding your upper jaw affects the floor of your nasal cavity, helping to increase airflow and making it easier for you to breath normally.
If you have severe obstructive sleep apnea, you may be a candidate for surgery. This surgery is performed when the use of appliances cannot provide the necessary results. Palatal expansion with surgery is a great alternative if you cannot tolerate an oral appliance at night or cannot adhere to CPAP treatment. Widening your palate affects nasal and sinus passages, helping you to breath without obstruction.