18 Sep Are Chin Straps Worth the Hype? Our Sleep Specialists Answer
Chin straps are trending across social media platforms for their potential to slim the face, treat sleep apnea, and reduce snoring by improving nasal breathing.
But the real question is: Are chin straps worth the hype?
At TMJ & Sleep Solutions of Alabama, we know you want a good night’s sleep and are keen to try anything to achieve it. Our job is to let you know what is and isn’t worth the hype, bringing you closer to the sleep you deserve.
What Exactly are Chin Straps?
A chin strap is an adjustable band that wraps around your head and under your chin. The strap gently holds the jaw closed, preventing the mouth from opening and reducing loud snoring. Keeping the jaw in place promotes nasal breathing and can prevent drooling and other symptoms that sleep apnea patients experience with CPAP machines.
While chin straps might help reduce snoring in some cases, they address mouth breathing, which is not the leading cause of sleep apnea. Chin straps don’t address how the throat’s upper airway collapses, causing breathing pauses during sleep.
How it Works
Chin straps can be helpful to prevent sleep apnea patients from sleeping with their mouth open and the resulting symptoms, but only in conjunction with CPAP treatment. Without a CPAP machine, a sleep apnea patient is still at risk for obstructive events. Oral appliances are preferred for their effectiveness because they’re customized to reposition the jaw or tongue, they’re designed for long-term use, and they provide a higher comfort level during sleep.
Dental devices physically advance and support the lower jaw, increasing the space behind the tongue and reducing tension in the soft tissues. The structural change with oral appliance therapy (OAT):
- Reduces collapse of the oropharynx and velopharynx.
- Decreases snoring by preventing soft-tissue vibration at the source.
- It is effective without CPAP treatment for many patients with minor to moderate OSA or primary snoring.
Learn more about our CPAP alternatives, CPAP Alternative Devices to Treat Sleep Apnea: Why Oral Appliance Therapy Works.
Separating Fact from Fiction
Chin straps offer potential benefits for people who sleep with their mouths open during the night. By keeping the jaw shut, chin straps can alleviate dry mouth symptoms that cause a sore throat the next morning. But that’s about all chin straps can offer for sleep apnea patients.
Despite the growing popularity of chin straps for jawline enhancement, no scientific evidence exists that they cause long-term jaw slimness.
The concept that chin straps cause the facial muscles to become firmer and toned stems from compression therapy, which can minimize swelling by stimulating blood flow and lymphatic movement. However, no evidence supports the notion of chin straps causing permanent facial lifting.
Many other treatments and procedures prove to promote significant results with lasting potential. Face shape has much to do with aging, genetics, and overall health. Chin straps can do little to change this.
Final Thoughts
To answer your question: Unfortunately, chin straps are not worth the hype. Other products on the market offer greater benefits for sleep apnea patients or individuals looking to achieve a slimmer face shape.
If your CPAP machine is causing you discomfort, we offer effective CPAP-alternative sleep apnea solutions at TMJ & Sleep Solutions of Alabama. Our oral appliance therapy devices are manageable, comfortable, and convenient. Contact us online or call us at (205)-874-9699 today for a consultation!