Drooling during sleep is a common occurrence that can lead to feelings of embarrassment, bad breath, and dehydration. While drooling is normal, excessive drooling may signal an underlying health issue. Several factors can cause drooling during sleep, including sleeping position, mouth breathing, health conditions, and medications. For instance, sleeping on your back can cause gravity to pull excess saliva down toward the pillow, resulting in drooling. Additionally, certain health conditions, such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or obstructive sleep apnea, can lead to increased drooling. Changing sleep positions, treating allergies, and seeking medical advice for continuous or severe drooling can help manage this issue.
Characteristics | Values |
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Why don't I swallow my saliva when I sleep? | There are several reasons why someone might not swallow their saliva while sleeping. This could be due to sleeping position, mouth breathing, health conditions, or medications. |
Possible causes | - Sleep position: Sleeping on your side or stomach can cause gravity to pull saliva down towards the pillow, resulting in drooling. |
- Mouth breathing: Sleeping with your mouth open can increase the likelihood of drooling.
- Health conditions: Certain conditions, such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), obstructive sleep apnea, or neurological disorders, can lead to increased drooling.
- Medications: Certain medications may have side effects that include excessive salivation and drooling. |
What You'll Learn
Sleeping position
Your sleeping position can have a significant impact on how much you drool. When you sleep on your back, gravity usually causes any excess saliva to stay in your mouth or go down your throat. On the other hand, if you sleep on your side or stomach, gravity is more likely to pull saliva down towards the pillow, resulting in drooling.
If you sleep on your side or stomach and often wake up to a wet pillow, you may want to consider changing your sleeping position. Sleeping on your back may help to minimise drooling. This can be a simple solution to reduce drooling and improve your sleep quality.
In addition to changing your sleep position, you can also try to breathe through your nose and keep your mouth closed while sleeping. This can be achieved by using mouth tape or other similar products.
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Mouth breathing
- Sleep position: Sleeping on your side or stomach can increase the likelihood of drooling, as gravity pulls the saliva downward.
- Mouth-breathing habits: Some people have a habit of breathing through their mouth while sleeping, which can lead to drooling.
- Infections and allergies: Conditions such as a cold, strep throat, or seasonal allergies can inflame your sinuses and block your airways, causing you to breathe through your mouth and drool more than usual.
- Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD): Heartburn is a well-known symptom of GERD, but it can also cause drooling and difficulty swallowing. The irritation in the oesophagus may trigger increased saliva production to relieve the irritation, leading to more drooling.
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA): OSA is a sleep-related breathing disorder that causes temporary pauses in breathing during sleep. Mouth breathing often accompanies or worsens OSA, making drooling more likely as saliva can easily escape through the open mouth.
- Medication side effects: Certain medications, including some antibiotics, antipsychotic drugs, and Alzheimer's treatments, can list excessive salivation and drooling as side effects.
If you are concerned about drooling during sleep or experience continuous or severe drooling, it is recommended to consult a healthcare professional for personalised advice and guidance.
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Health conditions
While drooling during sleep is normal, excessive drooling may be a sign of an underlying health condition. Here are some health conditions that can cause drooling in your sleep:
Neurological Disorders
Neurological disorders such as Lou Gehrig's disease (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) and Parkinson's disease can damage the nerves in the back of the throat, impairing the swallowing reflex and causing drooling. Other neurological conditions that may lead to drooling include cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, and multiple sclerosis.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
OSA is a sleep-related breathing disorder characterised by temporary pauses in breathing during sleep due to a narrowed or blocked airway. Mouth breathing is common in OSA, and it can increase the likelihood of drooling since saliva can more easily escape when the mouth is open.
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
GERD is often associated with heartburn, but it can also cause drooling and difficulty swallowing. The irritation in the oesophagus caused by GERD may trigger increased saliva production to relieve the irritation, resulting in drooling.
Infections and Allergies
Infections such as the common cold, strep throat, tonsillitis, sinus infections, and seasonal allergies can inflame the sinuses and block airways. This can lead to mouth breathing and increased drooling.
Medications
Certain medications, including some antibiotics, antipsychotic drugs, and Alzheimer's treatments, can have excessive salivation and drooling as side effects.
Lesions or Tumours in the Throat
Benign or cancerous growths in the throat can narrow the oesophagus, making it challenging to swallow and potentially leading to drooling.
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Medication side effects
While sleeping, the body's swallowing reflexes are altered, and the frequency of swallowing decreases. This is partly due to the reduced production of saliva, which is a natural part of the body's circadian rhythm. The salivary glands produce less saliva at night, reducing the need for frequent swallowing. However, certain factors, such as body position, age, medical conditions, and medications, can affect swallowing frequency and efficiency during sleep.
Medications can indeed influence saliva management during sleep and lead to conditions like sleep apnea or excessive drooling. Some medications can cause dry mouth, which, paradoxically, can lead to increased saliva production and the need for frequent swallowing. This can be particularly problematic for those who sleep with their mouths open.
Additionally, certain prescription medications have been linked to excessive salivation and drooling as a side effect. These include specific antibiotics, antipsychotic drugs, and medications used to treat Alzheimer's. It is important to note that if a person is experiencing excessive drooling due to medication, they should not stop taking the medication but instead consult their doctor about potential alternatives.
In some cases, medications may be used to reduce saliva production if excessive drooling becomes a concern. Anticholinergic drugs, for example, can decrease saliva production but are typically a last resort due to their potential side effects.
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Neurological disorders
Drooling during sleep is a normal occurrence and is caused by the continuous production of saliva while we sleep. However, excessive drooling may be a symptom of a more serious condition, such as a neurological disorder.
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS): This condition weakens the nerves that control muscles, making it difficult to coordinate the swallowing process.
- Brain tumours: Growths in the brain can disrupt nerve signals to muscles, impacting the tongue, jaw, and throat functions necessary for swallowing.
- Cerebral palsy: This developmental disorder affects muscle movement and coordination, including the muscles involved in swallowing.
- Dementia: The cognitive decline associated with dementia can make it difficult for individuals to chew and swallow effectively.
- Parkinson's disease: The deterioration of brain tissue in Parkinson's disease creates problems with movement and coordination, including the complex process of swallowing.
- Traumatic brain injury: Injuries to the brain can affect the neural control of swallowing, leading to dysphagia.
If you are experiencing difficulty swallowing or excessive drooling during sleep, it is important to consult a healthcare professional for an evaluation and appropriate treatment. They may refer you to specialists such as an otolaryngologist, speech-language pathologist, or neurologist, depending on the suspected cause.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, drooling while sleeping is normal and is caused by the production of saliva during sleep.
When sleeping on your back, gravity pulls saliva down towards the pillow, resulting in drooling.
Yes, health conditions such as acid reflux, obstructive sleep apnea, lesions or tumors in the throat, neurological disorders, and allergies or respiratory problems can cause drooling in your sleep.
Yes, sleeping on your side or stomach can increase the amount of drooling, as gravity pulls the saliva down towards the pillow.
Changing your sleeping position to sleeping on your back can help reduce drooling. Additionally, treating allergies and breathing through your nose instead of your mouth can also help.