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If you're a mouth breather, you could be creating an environment for acid reflux and hiatal hernia.

Mouth breathing, due to congestion or inflammation can contribute to a weakened diaphragm, altering its mechanics, increasing intra-abdominal pressure, and leading to poor posture.

Nasal breathing, or normal breathing, engages the diaphragm fully and rhythmically, helping to prevent acid reflux and hiatal hernia.

Chronic mouth breathing encourages shallow chest breathing using the upper chest and accessory muscles (the muscles in your neck and shoulders). This then leads to under use and weakening of the diaphragm over time, reducing its effectiveness and a clamp (known as a pinch-cock) on the esophagus where it passes through the diaphragm. This clamp or valve is necessary to prevent acid reflux from occurring. 

Mouth breathers have inefficient core and brath coordination, which can impair abdominal pressure regulation, a key factor in preventing acid reflux and hiatal hernia. Due to this, abnormal pressure spikes can occur in the abdomen especially during coughing , lifting or straining, all putting stress on the hiatal (opening) area of the diaphragm.

Mouth breathing, posturally speaking, is often associated with a forward head posture and poor spinal alignment, leading to stress on the vagus and phrenic nerves (the phrenic travels to the diaphragm), thus affecting diaphragmatic function.

During sleep, mouth breathing can worsen sleep apnea or snoring, both of which involve repeated pressure surges into the chest and abdominal cavity. This can worsen acid reflux and a hiatal hernia.

The solution is to get to the root cause of why the mouth breathing is occurring. This can be do to a variety of factors including: food sensitivities, inflammation of the nose or sinuses (the cause needs to be identified. e.g. mold, SIBO, etc), sympathetic nervous system overdrive (vagus related), and more.

Mouth breathing can truly aggravate acid reflux and hiatal hernia, but getting to the root of it isn't difficult. If you struggle with it we'd be happy to see how best to resolve it.

If you'd like help we're here for you. The best next step is to contact us for a consultation and then we can determine if what we do is a good fit for you. Call 727-335-0400.

#acidreflux #rootcausemedicine #hiatal hernia