Have you ever noticed that when you sleep on your side, you wake up with saliva leaking out of your mouth? Does that feel embarrassing? Need not to worry, as it is a common condition with most of us. Most of the people tend to drool when in a deep sleep.
Human body produces almost a liter of saliva in a day. Usually we produce more saliva when we are awake, rather than during the sleep. While sleeping our facial muscles relax and the saliva which accumulates in our mouth, in the absence of swallowing, leaks out of the mouth. This phenomenon is known as sialorrhea.
People tend to drool more while sleeping on their side rather than on their back. So try to sleep on your back to avoid embarrassment, caused by drooling, in front of other people. Other conditions responsible for drooling include sinus problems, allergies, mouth breathing, dental issues, etc. Wearing night guard to avoiding teeth grinding can also cause drooling.
Sleeping on back is recommended because it helps in sending back the saliva to the throat from where it automatically gets swallowed. If you are too habituated of sleeping on your side then you can buy special pillows designed to encourage sleeping on back. Also, try to pay attention to you breathe during the day time. If you find yourself mouth- breathing, then try to close your mouth and breathe from your nose. Gradually your habit of mouth breathing will change and it will help in reducing drooling as well.
Generally drooling is not harmful but excessive drooling can lead to pneumonia, since saliva contains bacteria which can spread the infection.
