Oral Posture

Why where your tongue rests matters

Let’s talk posture. Not the kind your ballet teacher once corrected, but the kind no one ever probably had to teach you you: oral posture. Specifically, where your tongue lives when your face is at rest. Is it gently enclosed by the sealed lips in the front and the soft palate in the back? And, is it up at the roof of the mouth effortlessly held there by slight negative pressure of very light suction? That is the default reflex we are all born with, and the natural oral posture for the rest of our life.

...Or, is it lying low in your mouth?

It might sound niche, even cosmetic, but the subtle habit of dropping the tongue down, away from the roof of the mouth carries lifelong influence: from how you breathe to how your face is shaped, from your sleep to how you carry yourself. It has so many implications on the overall health that tongue down is often referred to as “pathological tongue position”.

Why is it such a big deal?  A lot of people nowadays end up with their tongue flask, away from the palate.

The tongue, the soft palate and associated oropharyngeal muscles are supposed to act together to form a functional seal that ensures the body uses the correct, healthy breathing pathway - the nose. When the tongue is constantly on the palate and the lips are sealed, the system is set up for exclusive nasal breathing. When the tongue is up it also supports the craniofacial structure: the upper jaw (the maxilla), the shape of the eye sockets, the roof of the mouth /the floor of the nasal cavity, and the dental arches. (It also tones and maintains the shape of the palate and supports correct swallowing mechanics that engage Eustachian tube muscles)

Conversely, when all is apart, the lips, the tongue, the palate and associated oropharyngeal muscles lose tone (get hypotonic) and are more prone to collapsing inward during an intake of breath. That is a common cause of snoring and a contributing factor to Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). It is frequently also an invitation to the open mouth posture, and a factor in a divergent development of the facial architecture.

So, oral posture is not just about how you look but above all how you function.