Why does mouth breathing in children matter for the teeth?
Mouth breathing in children dries the mouth, which can inflame the gums around the front teeth and raise the risk of decay and bad breath. When it continues for years during growth, it has been linked with a narrow upper jaw, crossbites and open bites. The cause, often enlarged adenoids, tonsils or allergies, needs a paediatrician or ENT doctor. At Creative Arts in Dubai we check the teeth and bite and refer when needed.
Who treats you here Dr. Duaa Ameen General Dentist · Dr. Julia General Dentist
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Why do some children breathe through their mouths?
Children are built to breathe through the nose, which warms, filters and moistens the air. When a child breathes mainly through the mouth, it is usually because the nose is not letting enough air through, at least some of the time. The most common reasons are:
- Enlarged adenoids or tonsils. These glands at the back of the nose and throat are at their largest in early childhood and can partly block the airway.
- Allergies. Allergic rhinitis, from dust mites, pets, pollen or dust, keeps the inside of the nose swollen and congested.
- Frequent colds and sinus infections. Repeated congestion can make mouth breathing a default.
- Habit. Some children keep breathing through the mouth after the original blockage has gone, simply because it has become their normal resting posture.
- Less often, the shape of the nose or face, such as a deviated septum, plays a part.
Breathing through the mouth during a cold, or while running, is normal. What deserves attention is a child whose lips are apart at rest most of the day, or who breathes through the mouth every night.
What signs should parents look for, and who should check them?
These are common clues. None of them alone is a diagnosis, and several need a doctor rather than a dentist.
| What you notice | What it may point to | Who to see first |
|---|---|---|
| Lips apart at rest, dry or cracked lips | A mouth-breathing habit or a blocked nose | Your child's dentist and paediatrician |
| Snoring most nights, gasping or pauses in breathing during sleep | Sleep-disordered breathing, sometimes from large tonsils or adenoids | Paediatrician, who may refer to an ENT (ear, nose and throat) doctor |
| Constantly blocked or runny nose, sneezing, itchy eyes | Allergic rhinitis | Paediatrician or allergist |
| Restless sleep, daytime tiredness, difficulty concentrating | Poor-quality sleep, which has many possible causes | Paediatrician |
| Red, puffy gums around the upper front teeth | Gums drying out and inflamed by plaque | Dentist |
| Upper back teeth closing inside the lower ones, front teeth that do not meet | A crossbite or open bite developing | Dentist, then an orthodontic assessment |
If your child stops breathing during sleep, struggles to breathe or turns blue, seek urgent medical care. Our guide to snoring and sleep apnoea explains how sleep breathing problems are assessed.
How can mouth breathing affect the teeth and gums?
Saliva is the mouth's own protection: it rinses away food, neutralises acid and carries minerals that repair early damage to enamel. Breathing through the mouth, especially at night, dries the teeth and gums for hours at a time. That has several knock-on effects:
- Gum inflammation. The gums around the upper front teeth, which are most exposed to the air, often look red, swollen and shiny and bleed easily when brushed.
- Higher decay risk. With less saliva, plaque acids linger longer on the teeth, so sugary snacks and drinks do more harm.
- Bad breath. A dry mouth lets odour-producing bacteria thrive, particularly in the morning. Our page on bad breath covers other causes.
These effects are manageable with good home care and regular check-ups, but they tend to return as long as the mouth breathing continues, which is why the underlying cause matters.
Can mouth breathing change how the jaws and face grow?
During childhood the jaws are still growing, and the resting position of the tongue, lips and jaw helps guide that growth. When the mouth hangs open, the tongue tends to sit low instead of resting against the roof of the mouth, and the cheeks press inwards on the upper teeth. Studies have linked long-standing mouth breathing with a narrower upper jaw and high palate, crossbites, open bites, and a longer lower face with the lower jaw rotated downwards and back.
It is important to keep this in proportion. These are associations, and the research does not show that every mouth-breathing child will develop them, or that mouth breathing is the only cause; genetics and jaw size play a large part. Nor can a dentist or orthodontist fix a blocked airway. What an orthodontic assessment can do is show whether your child's bite and jaw width are developing normally, and whether anything is worth watching or treating as growth continues. Our guide to types of bite explains crossbites and open bites in plain words.
What can parents do about mouth breathing?
Start with the cause, then protect the teeth while it is being sorted out.
See your child's doctor first
Mention snoring, a constantly blocked nose or mouth breathing at night. The paediatrician can treat allergies and decide whether an ENT doctor should look at the adenoids and tonsils.
Keep a short diary
Note whether your child snores, breathes through the mouth when asleep or awake, and when the nose is blocked. A phone video of your child asleep can help the doctor.
Protect the teeth and gums
Brush twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste, keep sweet drinks and snacks to mealtimes, and offer water through the day and at bedtime.
Encourage lips-together breathing
Once the nose is clear, gentle reminders to rest with the lips together help some children break the habit. Do not tape a child's mouth at night; it is not a treatment and can be unsafe if the nose blocks.
Book a dental and bite check
Regular check-ups pick up gum inflammation and early decay, and around age seven an orthodontic assessment shows how the bite is developing.
Treat the breathing, not just the teeth
Orthodontic appliances, exercises and products marketed for mouth breathing cannot clear enlarged adenoids, tonsils or an allergic nose. If your child snores most nights, has pauses in breathing, or seems tired and unsettled by day, see a paediatrician first. Dental and orthodontic care work best alongside that medical care, not instead of it.
What does an orthodontic assessment add for a mouth-breathing child?
Around age seven, once the first adult molars and front teeth have come through, a specialist orthodontist can assess how the jaws are developing. For a child who breathes through the mouth, the assessment looks at the width of the upper jaw, whether the back teeth meet in a crossbite, whether the front teeth meet, how the lips close at rest and where the tongue sits when swallowing. Most children are simply monitored; if a problem is developing, the specialist explains what it involves and when treatment would normally be considered.
At Creative Arts in Dubai, Dr. Duaa Ameen and Dr. Julia check gums, decay risk and habits at children's check-ups, and our specialist orthodontists, Dr. Muhannad Kazzaz and Dr. Valeriia Kozachenko, carry out the children's orthodontic assessment. We work alongside your child's doctor rather than replacing them. Sucking habits can shape the bite in similar ways; see thumb sucking and dummies. Some parents also ask about myofunctional appliances, explained neutrally in our guide to myofunctional appliances.
Is your child a mouth breather and you want to know whether the bite is affected? Book a children's orthodontic assessment with our specialist orthodontists in Dubai.
Children's assessment