Dentures and snoring: should you sleep with them in?

What’s going on

Dentures don’t make you snore. But when you lose all your natural teeth, the shape of your mouth and jaw changes. Taking dentures out at night changes it again.

Without dentures, your jaw can close farther and your tongue has less room. In a 2006 Italian study, X-rays showed the space behind the throat got smaller when people took their dentures out.

Snoring comes from tissue in a narrowed airway vibrating. So it makes sense that sleeping without dentures could make snoring or breathing pauses worse for some people. The studies are mixed, though.

What the studies found

Two short studies found more breathing pauses without dentures.

• The 2006 study tested 48 people with no natural teeth for one night with dentures and one without. Their AHI (breathing pauses and shallow breaths per hour) averaged 11.0 with dentures and 17.4 without. The share with an AHI above 5, the usual cut-off for sleep apnea, rose from 48% to 71%.
• A 2009 Japanese study tested 34 people at home the same way. The average AHI was 13.3 with dentures and 17.7 without. But 8 of the 27 people with apnea got worse wearing dentures.

A longer trial found little difference. In a 2021 Canadian trial, 77 older adults with untreated apnea spent 30 nights with dentures in and 30 with them out.

The AHI difference was small, about 1 event per hour, and not significant. People woke slightly more often from breathing events with dentures in, and felt more discomfort. The authors said this supports the usual advice to take dentures out at night.

The takeaway: one night of testing can show a change, but over a month, sleeping in dentures didn’t clearly help. It isn’t a fix for snoring or apnea.

Signs it’s more than snoring

Loud snoring with pauses in breathing, gasping, or heavy daytime sleepiness needs a physician and a sleep test. That’s true with or without dentures. See snoring or sleep apnea?

Denture care at night

Healthy gums matter more than any snoring aid. Here’s what the ADA and Cleveland Clinic advise:

1. Take them out to sleep. Cleveland Clinic says to try not to sleep in your dentures. It suggests keeping them in a glass of cool water overnight.
2. Clean them every day. The ADA cites the American College of Prosthodontists: soak and brush dentures daily with a nonabrasive denture cleanser. The ADA links poor cleaning to denture stomatitis, an irritation of the gums under the denture.
3. Store them in water or cleanser. The ADA says this keeps a denture from drying out and losing its shape. Never use hot or boiling water, which can warp it.
4. Clean your mouth too. Brush your gums, tongue and the roof of your mouth before bed.
5. See your dentist for sores or a loose fit. Cleveland Clinic says a dentist can adjust dentures that don’t fit well.

Why jaw mouthpieces need natural teeth

A jaw-advancing mouthpiece Strong grips your upper and lower teeth and holds your lower jaw forward. That pulls the tongue forward and opens the airway. See how jaw-advancing mouthpieces work.

It needs firm teeth to hold on to. A denture can shift or pop out under that pull. That’s why store-bought jaw mouthpieces list dentures among the people who shouldn’t use them.

Don’t use a store-bought jaw mouthpiece if any of these apply:

• You’re under 18
• You have central sleep apnea
• You have loose teeth or gum disease
• You wear dentures or braces
• You have jaw joint problems
• You’ve had recent implants or major dental work

See who shouldn’t use a snoring mouthpiece.

What helps

Start with the cheapest steps:

• Sleeping on your side Some helps many people whose snoring is worse on their back.
• Less alcohol near bedtime Some can reduce snoring.
• Weight loss Strong, if you’re carrying extra weight, can reduce snoring and apnea.

A tongue-retaining device

A tongue-retaining device Weak holds your tongue forward with a suction bulb instead of moving your jaw. Cleveland Clinic says these can suit people whose teeth aren’t strong enough to hold a jaw device.

It doesn’t depend on natural teeth, so it’s the over-the-counter option for many denture wearers. It has two catches:

• Your nose must be clear. Your tongue sits in the bulb, so you breathe through your nose. If you’re often stuffy, it won’t suit you.
• The evidence is weaker. The AASM and AADSM guideline found too little evidence to judge tongue devices for sleep apnea.

Like other store-bought devices, it’s cleared only to reduce snoring. It isn’t a treatment for sleep apnea. See jaw mouthpiece vs tongue-retaining device.

What a dentist or doctor can do

Your dentist can check how your dentures fit, look for sore spots and stomatitis, and adjust or replace dentures that have loosened. Tell your dentist if you or your partner notice snoring or breathing pauses.

If you might have sleep apnea, a physician can order a sleep test and talk through treatment. CPAP Strong doesn’t need natural teeth.

A custom appliance is usually made to grip natural teeth, so it may not suit someone with no teeth. Ask a dentist trained in dental sleep medicine whether any design could work for your mouth, once a physician has diagnosed you.

What not to do

• Don’t start sleeping in your dentures to stop snoring. The longer trial didn’t find a clear benefit, and Cleveland Clinic advises against it. Ask your dentist first.
• Don’t force a jaw mouthpiece over dentures. It isn’t designed for them, and the pull can loosen them.
• Don’t ignore breathing pauses. A partner’s report is a reason to see a physician.