TL;DR
- Myofunctional therapy strengthens throat and facial muscles to improve tongue posture and nasal breathing, addressing issues like sleep apnea.
- It can benefit teens, adults, children, sleep-disorder patients, and orthodontic patients.
- Myofunctional therapy improves sleep quality, supports orthodontic treatment, enhances speech and articulation, and promotes healthy oral habits.
- Simple tongue exercises for better breathing include tongue slide, tongue stretch, and tongue clench.
How Myofunctional Therapy Can Help
Myofunctional therapy is a set of targeted exercises that strengthen the throat and facial muscles. These exercises improve tongue resting posture and help you with clear nasal breathing. Myofunctional therapy exercises also address underlying muscle imbalances and ease conditions like sleep apnea that cause airway blockage.
With regular practice, myofunctional therapy can promote smooth airflow, boost sleep quality, and offer lasting oral health benefits. Let’s explore what myofunctional therapy is, its benefits, and tongue exercises that help enhance breathing.
What is Myofunctional Therapy?
Myofunctional therapy trains the orofacial muscles to perform their ideal movement and rest in their proper positions. It uses specific exercises for the tongue, lips, cheeks, and jaw that help strengthen and coordinate these muscles.
Orofacial myofunctional therapy exercises are often used to correct abnormal swallowing patterns, tongue thrust, and other oral muscle imbalances. These issues can affect speech, breathing, and even dental alignment if not addressed.
While originally designed to support speech development, research shows they are also effective in improving sleep-disordered breathing. This condition includes problems such as snoring and obstructive sleep apnea, where the airway becomes partially or fully blocked during sleep.
Who Can Benefit from Myofunctional Therapy?
Myofunctional therapy exercises can be beneficial for a wide range of individuals. It is especially helpful for:
Teens And Adults
Those experiencing TMJ disorders, sleep apnea, and speech problems can benefit from myofunctional therapy exercises for adults. The exercises can improve orofacial function and help reduce harmful habits such as chronic mouth breathing.
Children
Myofunctional therapy exercises for kids benefit children with habits like thumb-sucking, mouth breathing or prolonged pacifier use. With early intervention, it is possible to avoid extensive orthodontic treatment and guide proper oral development.
Sleep-Disorder Patients
Patients with sleep disorders like snoring and sleep apnea can benefit from myofunctional therapy. By strengthening the tongue and throat muscles, it supports better airway stability, improving breathing, and sleep quality.
Orthodontic Patients
Myofunctional therapy supports the realignment process in orthodontic patients by ensuring proper functioning of orofacial muscles. The therapy reduces the chances of relapse upon the removal of the orthodontic braces.
4 Benefits of Myofunctional Therapy
Myofunctional therapy is a non-invasive treatment that retrains the orofacial muscles. Its benefits extend across various aspects of oral and overall health, including:
-
Better Sleep and Reduced Snoring
Myofunctional therapy exercises strengthen the muscles in your tongue, lips, and throat, helping keep your airway open while you sleep. This is particularly helpful for people with sleep apnea, where breathing stops temporarily during sleep. By preventing airway collapse, it reduces snoring and sleep interruptions, giving you more restful and healthier sleep.
-
Supports Orthodontic Treatment and Teeth Alignment
Weak or improperly functioning oral muscles can lead to misaligned teeth or crowding. Even after braces or other orthodontic treatments, these habits may cause teeth to shift. Myofunctional therapy trains the muscles to support proper oral posture, helping maintain teeth alignment and sometimes reducing the need for further dental procedures.
-
Improved Speech and Articulation
Speech clarity depends on how well your tongue, lips, and teeth work together. Poor orofacial muscle function can make certain sounds difficult to pronounce, affecting overall speech. Myofunctional exercises strengthen these muscles and improve coordination, helping with articulation disorders and making speech clearer.
-
Healthier Oral Habits
These exercises target habits like tongue thrusting and mouth breathing, which can affect jaw development and dental health. Correcting these habits early prevents long-term dental or facial problems. For growing children, proper muscle function helps guide the jaw and facial bones into the right position. This can prevent issues like crowded teeth, misaligned bites, or the need for surgical interventions later.
Tongue Exercises for Better Breathing
Good breathing starts with a strong, well-positioned tongue, and here are some simple tongue exercises to help you breathe better every day:
- Tongue Slide: Press the tongue tip on the front teeth of the upper jaw and then slide the tongue backwards. Repeat this 5 times daily to strengthen the muscles of your tongue.
- Tongue Stretch: Stick out your tongue and try to touch it to your chin while looking upwards. Hold it for 15 seconds and try to increase the duration with each attempt.
- Tongue Clench: Gently place your tongue between your lower and upper front teeth. While holding the tongue, perform 5 swallows and keep repeating it 5 times.
Final Words
Incorporating myofunctional therapy exercises into your everyday routine can make a real difference in how you breathe, sleep, and even speak. These small, consistent steps help strengthen your tongue and facial muscles, improve oral posture, and reduce issues like snoring or mouth breathing. Over time, you may notice not just better breathing, but a healthier mouth and improved oral function.
If you or anyone in the family is suffering from sleeping or breathing disorders, myofunctional therapy can help. For the right guidance, contact the best dentist in Lake Elmo. Our team at Valley Ridge Dental will assess your issues and suggest exercises suited to your needs, guiding you to practise them correctly and safely.
To book an appointment, call us at (651) 439-0322 or visit us at 12425 55th St N, Suite B, Lake Elmo, MN 55042.
FAQs
Can myofunctional therapy help with sleep apnea?
Myofunctional therapy strengthens your orofacial muscles to improve tongue posture and fix sleep-disordered breathing. It reduces the risk of airway collapse during sleep and enhances your breathing to avoid daytime sleepiness.
How often should I practice tongue exercises for results?
It is generally recommended to practice tongue exercises thrice a day for improved strength. Depending on the purpose, the healthcare provider might suggest you exercise for at least 8 weeks for the best results.
At what age can myofunctional therapy start?
Myofunctional therapy can be started in children as young as 3 years old for healthy orofacial development. In exceptional cases, the health provider might start in children who are 24 months old.
Can tongue exercises replace orthodontic treatment?
Tongue exercises can support orthodontic treatment for aligned teeth, but cannot replace it. A proper tongue posture may act as a preventive measure. However, it cannot correct bite problems.
How long does Myofunctional Therapy usually take?
Numerous factors play a key role in deciding the duration of myofunctional therapy. Typically, the therapy may take 8 to 12 months, depending upon the severity of the condition and improvements.
