The practice of putting the tongue on the roof of the mouth originates from Buddhism, Taoism and Zen meditation, however it could be argued that it is the natural tongue posture and has been used by ancient man. In this article you will find out the benefits of putting your tongue on roof of mouth and the proper way to do it.

Benefits of Putting Tongue On Roof Of Mouth

1. Strengthens Face Muscles

Putting the tongue on roof of mouth activates muscles that have not been used previously, specifically the upper part of the face and the jaw. I found that it improves bags under eyes and makes the face more defined overall.

2. Corrects Facial Growth

By strengthening the face muscles and giving it a support you force your face to grow horizontally, rather than going down. If you look at most older people you can notice how their faces are longer and they have a less defined chin, this is due to many years of bad face posture. If you keep your tongue on roof of mouth all the time you can actually improve your face as you age.

3. Promotes Straight Teeth

By keeping the tongue on roof of mouth you slowly start to expand the upper palate, which also expands the jaw. The number one reason for crooked teeth is small mouths, because there’s not enough space for all the teeth to grow comfortably. This also explains why many people today have to get their wisdom teeth removed, there’s simply not enough space.

4. Forces To Nose Breathe

Breathing through your nose has many benefits in itself, such as getting more oxygen and having deeper breaths, this could improve your brain function and make you more alert. It’s also known that nose breathing is better for the face, because mouth breathing causes your jaw to sag and grow vertically. Another benefit is better sleep quality, could help those who suffer from sleep apnea and snoring.

5. Improves Overall Body Posture

The body is linked together and every part of the body is dependent on each other, if some part of the body is misaligned it can cause other parts to get misaligned as well. Tongue poster could be the missing link of good body posture. Keeping the tongue on the palate supports the head and neck, this gives the last bit of support the body needs. This practice can help those who have forward head posture.

6. Makes You More Mindful

Like previously mentioned this practice has been used in meditation and yoga to better concentrate and be mindful. It is excellent for meditation because you have something to concentrate on, especially in the beginning, when you are still getting used to it and it feels unnatural. When you concentrate on putting your tongue on the roof of your mouth you shun away thoughts, which is the basic premise of meditation.

Correct Way of Putting Your Tongue On Roof Of Mouth

There are a lot of misconceptions about how to correctly put your tongue on the roof of the mouth, some say you should put only the tip of the tongue, however this would’t give you much facial growth benefits. 

The correct way according to Orthotropics (An association who specialize in facial growth) is to put the whole tongue on the palate, this forces the maxilla to go up and given enough time for the palate to widen.

An easy way to find the natural position is to swallow something, then during the process the tongue should go on top of the palate. Another way is to hum the letter “n”. Once you found the natural position remember it and try to stay in that position.

What to do if your palate is too small?

Often times your upper palate will be too small to put your whole tongue on it, there’s not much you can do, but to just try to get as much surface area as possible. There’s one exercise I would recommend if you are really struggling, get some gum and try to push it against your palate.

A common mistake is to push hard against the side of the teeth in an attempt to make it wider. This is not what you should be aiming for, because it will make your jaw too wide, and you may develop an overbite. In the beginning it could be a good strategy if you have a narrow palate, but generally you should focus on pushing against the upper part of the palate and let your tongue naturally push against the teeth slightly.

How hard to push?

You shouldn’t push too hard, because your tongue will get tired after awhile. Try to lightly to moderately push against the palate so, that it’s comfortable to you.

How long should you do it?

Ideally you should be doing it all the time, but that’s not realistic for everybody when starting off. In the beginning, you will probably really struggle and be able to keep it for a short amount of time, each day getting more comfortable until you don’t think about it and it becomes second nature.

Is it too late to improve the face?

The younger you start putting your tongue on the roof of your mouth the easier it’s going to be and the better results you will get. It’s harder to get good results after you’ve finished growing, but even if you can’t get a model face that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try this, because it has other healthy benefits.

Final Words

I have been referring to putting your tongue on the roof of the mouth as a practice, however this isn’t a practice it’s just what we are suppose to do. It’s just that we live in such a comfortable society that we forgot this part of our bodies. To undo many years of comfortable living requires a lot of dedication, but those who are willing to put in the work will reap the benefits. 

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