TL;DR:
Is mouth breathing in kids bad? While not always catastrophic, the simple answer is yes.
Open mouth breathing in children isn’t just a habit. It can affect sleep, facial development, behavior, and dental health. Chronic mouth breathing may signal airway obstruction, enlarged adenoids, or structural concerns that deserve evaluation.
In this guide, you’ll discover:
- The most common causes of mouth breathing
- Whether mouth breathing can cause nasal congestion
- How enlarged adenoids affect breathing
- The connection between chronic mouth breathing and behavior
- Treatment options to help your child breathe better and grow healthier
Open-mouth breathing is breathing through the mouth instead of the nose. In babies, toddlers, and children, open-mouth breathing is most common at night, but it can also occur during the day.
While most of the time, mouth breathing occurs on occasion because your child is sick or has allergies, it can occur regularly due to more severe issues. If regular mouth breathing doesn’t resolve during childhood, your child could be at risk of developing several serious medical conditions.
Why Is My Child Breathing Through Their Mouth?
There are a number of reasons mouth breathing could be occurring, but child mouth breathing typically occurs at night when the child is sleeping, often indicating a problem in the nasal passages. If left unchecked, open-mouth breathing over many years could lead to the development of orofacial myofunctional disorders.
This is why it is extremely important that if your child is not sick, they see a pediatric dentist ASAP to help resolve why they experience regular mouth breathing at night.
Whether your newborn sleeps with their mouth open or your older toddler does, it’s most likely happening because there is an obstruction in their nasal passage. Some common underlying issues your child may have that cause them to breathe through their mouth include:
- Deviated septum
- Enlarged vessels, bones, or tissue in their nasal passage
- Tongue tie
If your child is mouth breathing and does not have a blocked nasal passage, it could be due to problems with their bite and mouth structure. The shape of your child’s jaw may prevent them from correctly closing their mouths.
Therefore, they breathe out of the mouth because it cannot shut properly.
If your toddler sleeps with their mouth open but breathes through the nose, they do not have an issue with their mouth or bite structure. Instead, they have a blockage in the upper airway, such as their throat or nose.
What to Do
If you notice your child mouth breathing, it could be because of various things. The best thing to do is to make an appointment with a pediatric dentist for an evaluation.
My Baby Sleeps with Their Mouth Open/Is This Bad?
Occasional mouth breathing due to congestion or allergies usually resolves on its own.
When children continuously breathe through their mouths, however, you may begin to notice symptoms such as irritability, cracked lips, and excessive crying in younger children or newborns.
When children display frequent open-mouth breathing, which most commonly happens during mouth breathing at night, it can cause numerous dental health concerns. These dental health concerns include:
- Enlarged tonsils
- Enlarged adenoids
- Temporomandibular disorder of the jaw
- Erosion of the teeth
- Teeth grinding
- Myofascial pain
- Periodontal disease
- Impactedteeth
- Malocclusion
- Tooth decay
- Chronic bad breath
In addition to dental health concerns, open-mouth breathing can cause a wide range of other overall health issuesH2: Can Mouth Breathing Cause Behavior Problems?
Open-mouth breathing can cause behavioral problems in children, contributing to their inability to focus, irritability, and lack of sleep. Open-mouth breathing can cause problems in your child’s mental development because if they cannot properly breathe, their brain cannot function correctly.
Some common behavioral health concerns your children might experience due to mouth breathing include:
- Slower cognitive development
- Difficulty concentrating and solving problems
- Disturbed social and emotional development
- Possibility of beingdiagnosed incorrectlywith ADHD or ADD
- Poor school performance
A Note on Mouth Breathing in Babies
Open-mouth breathing can occur in babies as young as three to four months old, as they do not develop the reflex to breathe through their mouth until that point. If your baby or young child is mouth breathing at night, it can become a regular habit even when they are awake.
It is especially important to be aware of mouth breathing in babies since it can affect the development of their brains if left untreated.
Your child is at risk of breathing through the mouth if they suck their thumb or have prolonged use of pacifiers, or if they stop breastfeeding or bottle feeding before three months of age.
How Do You Stop Mouth Breathing in Children?
If you notice signs of chronic mouth breathing, the first step is scheduling an evaluation with a pediatric dentist who understands airway development. Mouth breathing is usually a symptom rather than the underlying problem, so identifying the cause is key.
Depending on what’s contributing to your child’s open-mouth breathing, treatment may include:
- Allergy management
- Breathing retraining or myofunctional therapy
- Orthodontic treatment to guide jaw growth and improve airway space
- Removal of enlarged tonsils or adenoids
- Tongue tie release, if indicated
- Addressing nasal or throat obstruction
- Habit correction (such as thumb sucking)
- Evaluating healthy weight for airway support
Because airway growth impacts facial development, sleep quality, and behavior, early intervention is a super important step toward healthier breathing and a thriving smile!
Final Thoughts
Open-mouth breathing in children can be reversed, but it is essential to take steps to prevent it from happening. If you notice that your child breathes through their mouth and they are not sick, make an appointment at The Super Dentists to help determine the cause.
Learn more about our Pediatric Dental Services at The Super Dentists. Learn more about our Kids and Teen Dental Services at The Super Dentists. Schedule an appointment today and bring your family to a Super Dentists location near you!
FAQs
Can Mouth Breathing Affect My Child’s Facial Development?
Yes, chronic mouth breathing can lead to many types of changes in facial structure, such as:
- A longer face
- A narrower jaw
- A high-arched palate
How Can I Tell if My Child Has Sleep Apnea?
Loud snoring, pauses in breathing during sleep, restless sleep, and daytime sleepiness can be signs of sleep apnea. Consult a doctor if you notice these symptoms.
My Child Outgrow Mouth Breathing?
It depends.
Some issues, such as enlarged adenoids, may be resolved with age. Others require intervention. It’s important to have your child evaluated to see what is causing their mouth breathing in order to recommend the appropriate course of action, if any.
Can Mouth Breathing Cause Bad Breath or Dental Issues?
Yes, mouth breathing can dry out the mouth.
This can lead to a decrease in saliva production, which in turn can contribute to not only bad breath but also other issues over time, like tooth decay.
Can Mouth Breathing Affect a Toddler’s Speech?
If your child breathes through their mouth most of the time, it can affect their speech. Your child is likely to struggle with certain speech sounds or develop a lisp. If your child develops a lisp, they may have difficulty saying the letter “s” properly.
Their speech may be affected by mouth breathing because it can cause a tongue thrust swallowing pattern. This typically occurs during late childhood, but it is due to your child breathing through their mouth for a long period of time. In severe circumstances, this can also cause trouble with swallowing and make your child more prone to choking.
Does mouth breathing cause nasal congestion?
Yes, it can. While nasal congestion often causes mouth breathing in the first place, the reverse can also happen. When a child regularly breathes through their mouth, the nasal passages don’t get the normal airflow they need to stay clear and healthy. Over time, this can lead to swelling and inflammation inside the nose, creating a cycle of chronic mouth breathing and stuffiness. Supporting proper nasal breathing helps maintain healthy airway function and protects your child’s developing smile.
Do enlarged adenoids cause mouth breathing?
Yes. Enlarged adenoids are one of the most common causes of mouth breathing in children. Adenoids sit behind the nose, and when they become swollen—often from allergies or frequent infections—they can partially block the nasal airway. If air can’t move easily through the nose, children naturally switch to breathing through their mouths. Persistent mouth breathing may affect sleep, facial development, and dental health, so an airway-focused evaluation is a Super important next step if symptoms continue.