What Can Open Mouth Resting Posture Lead To?
Why Open Mouth Resting Posture Matters (and How a Speech Therapist Can Help)
Have you noticed your child watching TV, playing, or even sleeping with their mouth open? This might seem like a minor habit, but consistent open mouth resting posture can be a red flag for underlying issues—and may lead to long-term consequences if not addressed early.
What Is Open Mouth Resting Posture?
In a typical resting position, the mouth is closed, the tongue rests lightly against the roof of the mouth, and breathing occurs through the nose. This posture supports healthy facial growth, speech development, and proper breathing mechanics. When a child consistently breathes through their mouth and rests with an open mouth, it often signals muscle weakness, structural issues (like enlarged tonsils or adenoids), chronic nasal congestion, or poor oral habits.
What Can Open Mouth Resting Posture Lead To?
Over time, habitual mouth breathing and open mouth posture can contribute to a range of physical, dental, speech, and developmental issues:
1. Facial Growth & Structural Changes
- Long, narrow face shape (“adenoid face”)
- Poor jaw alignment or underdeveloped jaw
- High, narrow palate (roof of the mouth)
- Small or recessed chin
These changes can affect a child’s appearance and overall facial symmetry as they grow.
2. Dental Problems
- Crowded or misaligned teeth
- Overbite, open bite, or crossbite
- Risk of orthodontic relapse after braces
- Mouth breathing can disrupt proper tongue posture, which plays a vital role in shaping the dental arch.
3. Speech Delays or Articulation Errors
- Lisp or imprecise production of sounds like /s/, /z/, /t/, /d/, /n/, and /l/
- Difficulty with clarity and intelligibility
- Sound distortions from improper tongue placement
- The tongue’s resting posture affects how it moves for speech. Low tongue posture often leads to inefficient or distorted articulation.
4. Feeding Difficulties
- Picky eating or difficulty chewing and swallowing
- Mouth fatigue during meals
- Weak lip seal and food spillage
- Oral motor weakness or dysfunction can make eating physically tiring and unpleasant for children.
5. Sleep & Breathing Issues
- Snoring or noisy breathing at night
- Teeth grinding (bruxism)
- Daytime sleepiness, hyperactivity, or poor focus
- Open mouth posture is often associated with sleep-disordered breathing and can interfere with restorative sleep—affecting attention, mood, and learning.
6. Impaired Oxygen Intake and Posture
- Mouth breathing bypasses the body’s natural air filtration and humidification system (the nose)
- Shallow chest breathing or poor head/neck posture
- Fatigue and reduced stamina
- Over time, this can lead to changes in body posture and decreased physical performance.
How Can a Speech Therapist Help?
Speech-language pathologists (SLPs), especially those with training in orofacial myofunctional therapy, can assess and treat the root causes of open mouth posture with a personalized and collaborative approach.
What We Do:
✅ Assess breathing patterns, oral motor strength, and resting posture
✅ Identify oral habits (e.g., thumb sucking, pacifier use, nail biting) that may be contributing
✅ Provide fun and functional exercises to strengthen the lips, tongue, and cheeks
✅ Train children to keep lips closed and breathe through the nose
✅ Support articulation and speech clarity by improving tongue coordination
✅ Collaborate with ENTs, pediatricians, orthodontists, and airway specialists as needed
Early Intervention Is Key
Open mouth posture may seem subtle—but its impact is anything but. The good news is that early support can prevent long-term complications and set your child up for success in speech, feeding, sleep, and growth.
At Creative Speech Therapy NYC, we’re experienced in identifying and addressing the root causes of oral motor and myofunctional issues. If you’ve noticed your child consistently resting with their mouth open, we’d love to help.
Contact us today to schedule a consultation. Together, we can support your child in developing healthy habits that last a lifetime.
Written by: Rachael Rose M.S. CCC-SLP, TSSLD
Owner/Speech/Language Pathologist
Read our article on Developedia’s website, The Open Mouth Breathing Ripple Effect in Babies and Kids Deserves Attention.