Why Everyone’s Talking About Mouth Taping

Chasing Life

CNN

Nutrition, Health & Fitness, Mental Health

4.4 • 7.8K Ratings

🗓️ 9 December 2025

⏱️ 17 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

There’s a new sleep trend making waves: taping your mouth shut at night. Advocates say it can help you breathe better, sleep deeper, and even wake up more energized. But is it safe -- or could it put your health at risk? Sanjay breaks down what the science says about this viral “hack” and what doctors want you to know before you try it. Plus, a listener asks about calcium supplements and testosterone for bone loss. This episode was produced by Jennifer Lai Medical Writer: Andrea Kane Showrunner: Amanda Sealy Senior Producer: Dan Bloom Technical Director: Dan Dzula Executive Producer: Steve Lickteig Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey there, and welcome to paging Dr. Gupta.
0:06.4	Thank you so much for joining us.
0:08.6	As you know by now, this is the place where I get to answer your health questions,
0:13.0	hear your concerns, and figure out what's on your mind.
0:16.4	Jennifer is with us today.
0:18.5	Who do we have first?
0:20.4	Hi, Sanjay. Today's question actually comes from a few folks on our podcast team.
0:25.6	We have questions about mouth taping, the trend where you literally tape your mouth shut while you sleep.
0:32.6	People are saying it can help you breathe better and even sleep better, and we're seeing a lot of this online.
0:39.9	But is it actually safe to try out and does it really work?
0:45.1	All right, Jennifer, great question, and I got to tell you, I'm not surprised this question is popping up on your feed.
0:50.8	Quick anecdote, I walked into my oldest daughter's bedroom when she was visiting over the
0:56.0	holidays. And guess what? I saw tape all over her mouth. Mouth taping is definitely having a moment,
1:03.8	but I'm going to tell you what you need to know about it, whether it's worth trying and what to
1:08.4	look out for right after the break.
1:18.3	Okay, first things first.
1:22.6	For those who haven't come across this trend, mouth taping.
1:23.9	What exactly is it?
1:29.0	You're probably imagining someone with tape over their mouth hostage style, like in a movie. And guess what? You're probably imagining someone with tape over their mouth, hostage style, like in a movie.
1:34.5	And guess what? You're actually not that far off. That's what surprised me so much when I walked in and saw Sage with that tape on her mouth.
1:39.9	Mouth taping is the practice of taping your lips together overnight while you sleep.
1:45.2	Now, mouth tape itself, that can come in a variety of formats.
	...

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