The art of breathing through the mouth during strenuous exercises and workouts comes as a natural instinct to gulp in all the air within the shortest time possible. Breathing with your mouth open has many implications for your health including possible gum inflammation. However, the health of your gums is much more dependent on what you do habitually rather than transient opening of the mouth during during workouts.
Causes of Mouth Breathing
You probably open your mouth during workouts with the impression that it increases your efficiency. When your gums are exposed to air, however, they tend to dry up and become predisposed to inflammation. Opening your mouth during workouts affects more of the efficiency of your energy than your gums. Habitual mouth breathing is what really affects your gums rather than temporary mouth breathing during workouts. If you habitually mouth-breathe, you need to undergo screening by an otolaryngologist to rule out underlying blockages such as enlarged adenoids and tonsils.
Gum Inflammation Causes
Gums are created to be under the continual bath of saliva, which cleanses and protects your gums. Breathing during workouts dries out your gums but that temporary dryness will not mean much unless you are a habitual mouth-breather. However, it's the loss of cleansing and protective functions of your saliva that causes the inflammation rather than dryness in itself. With the loss of cleansing action comes the accumulation of tartar bacteria and other microorganisms that release harmful toxins that result in gum inflammation.
Mouth-breathers and Gingivitis
Gum inflammation resulting from mouth breathing is a controversial subject. For example, a study published in September 1998 edition of Journal of the Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry reported no difference in dental deposits between mouth-breathers and normal breathers. However, a November 2007 study published in Quintessence International reported increased gingivitis among mouth-breathers. Some underlying factors such as badly arranged teeth could predispose you to gingivitis regardless of whether you are a mouth-breather.
Nose Breathing Better
The effects of mouth-breathing on your body far outweigh gum inflammation. Even if you escape gum inflammation, you are exposed to other problems such as reduced oxygen in your cells, sleep problems, suppressed nitrous oxide utilization and many other consequences, according to Normalbreathing.com. Above all, mouth-breathing reduces your efficiency during workouts and athletic performance.
References
- American Academy of Otolaryngology; Insight into Tonsillectomy and Adenoidectomy
- I Dental Hub: Effects of Mouth Breathing
- Pubmed Health: Gingivitis
- "Journal of the Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry"; A Comparative Ctudy of Effects of Mouth Breathing; MS Gulati, N Grewal, A Kaur; September 1998
- "Quintessence International"; Atypical Streptococcal Infection of Gingiva; M. Cenk Haytac and I. Attila --z; November/December 2007
- NormalBreathing.Com: Nose vs. Mouth Breathing Effects
