What is Mewing Technique? And How Does It Work?

ABSTRACT

Mewing is a technique in which the tongue is placed on the roof of the mouth in order to shape your jawline and appear more square. The tongue is a muscular organ which manipulates food for chewing and swallowing as part of the digestive system which is the primary organ of taste. The tongue's upper surface (dorsum) has certain taste buds which are housed in numerous lingual papillae. It is divided into two parts- an oral part at the front and a pharyngeal part at the back. The upper surface of the tongue is the dorsum and divided into the grooves into symmetrical halves by the median sulcus. There are 8 muscles of the human tongue which are classified as Intrinsic and Extrinsic. The jaw is an opposable articulated structure which is present at the entrance of the mouth which is mainly for grasping and manipulating food. In this article, we are going to discuss a certain technique which changes overall facial features and notably jawline.

INTRODUCTION

Mewing is the practice of repositioning the tongue inside the mouth with the goal of changing one jawline and appearance. It can be helpful in patients with Sleep Apnea, Sinusitis and many other conditions. It comes from the work of British Orthodontist John Mew which focuses on the position of the tongue to maintain the jaw posture. The benefits of mewing include a well-defined jawline and improved alignment of the chin and nose. When the tongue is placed against the roof of the mouth it must be sitting between the molars. Mewing is an effective alternative jaw alignment surgery.

ORIGIN OF MEWING

Mew borrowed Melvin Moss's Functional Matrix theory which was introduced in the dental textbook in 1962 the functional matrix hypothesis which suggests that all the facial bones which include teeth and jaws attain optimal development and use them correctly.

PURPOSE OF MEWING

A growing movement for mewing around the world is gaining therapeutic and cosmetic benefits. As it dramatically transforms the shape of your face.

Cosmetic Benefits

• Stronger and more attractive jawline
• Enhances the mid-facial area

Disrupted medical claims

• Mewing can straighten teeth by reconstructing the jaw part.
• Treats the obstructive sleep apnea.
• Breathing problems.
• Swallowing issues.
• Speech disorders.
• Sinusitis.
• Jaw joint pain which includes pain.
• Double chin.

HOW TO MEW (STEP BY STEP)

• Close your mouth and relax.
• Place the bottom front teeth behind the upper teeth.
• Flatten your tongue against the roof of your mouth and feel the muscles are working.
• Move the tip of the tongue behind the teeth without touching and in rough the tongue must make an n or ng sound.
• Hold as long as you can and start the duration to new and increase the duration and then hold it.
• Repeat this exercise multiple times a day for a few years and repeat this throughout the day.

HOW DOES MEWING WORKS?

• Mewing is a repositioning of the tongue into a new place.
• Over time the position of the tongue changes the all-over facial features most commonly the jawline.
• It is helpful in alleviating the pain in the jaw which provides relief during snoring.
• Mewing makes the jawline more defined and helpful in providing proper shape and making it thinner.

RISK FACTORS

Changing the jawline and placement of the lower jaw at any length of time causes some problem which includes-

• Misaligned teeth Misalignment of the lower and upper jaw Dysfunction at the hinge of the temporomandibular joint Chipped teeth Undesired change in the shape of the face

AYURVEDIC ASPECT

In ayurveda, it is correlated with Khechari Mudra-

• Khechara - to move
• Mudra - posture

Khechari mudra can be well practiced and is the mudra of the Yoga Sadhana where both mind and tongue are mainly focused towards the sky. One must sit in Padmasana where both visions are fixed between eyebrows and by reversing the tongue. This is known as Khechari Mudra. There are two ways for performing-

• Put the part of the frenum beneath the tongue and enable the tongue to move backwards and make an easy entry into the nasal cavity.
• Frenum is not beneath the tongue and practice Talabya Kriya which enters the nasal cavity.

KHECHARI MUDRA STEPS

• Sit in a comfortable position by using a chair or a blanket on the floor.
• Close your eyes and curl the tongue back and in an upwards direction that should reach the soft spot on the roof of your mouth.
• Apply gentle pressure on the point by using the tip of the tongue and remain in the position as long as you feel comfortable.
• When you feel the pain, bring it to a normal position.
• Relax and repeat the same process.

VARIOUS STAGES OF MUDRA

Stage 1 – soft palate of uvula-

• It is done by extending the tongue and rolling it back as far as you can.
• Reach to the hard palate and do fake swallowing to slide the tongue on the soft palate.
• Do it 3-4 times until the tongue reaches the soft palate comfortably.
• Push your tongue with a clean finger and slide your tongue in the mouth.
• Try to reach your tongue at the bottom of your mouth where it touches Uvula.
• Do 3-4 times to get the tongue at a comfortable point.

Stage 2 – Passing the Uvula

• In the second stage, the Uvula tongue reaches farther than the Uvula region.
• Open your glottis and make a bit of a blow inside the throat.
• A strong burst of air is helpful in pushing the rolled tongue behind the uvula which enters into the nasopharynx.

Stage 3 – Slipping into Nasopharynx

• When the tongue is moving behind the Uvula, it does not come to the normal position.
• The tongue will slip and there will be a strong urge for throwing it out of the tongue.
• Breathe slowly
• The tongue will slip into the nasopharynx behind the soft palate and touch the bony structure known as the pituitary gland.

Stage 4 – Pressing the Pituitary To secrete Nectar

• The tongue has reached the top of the pharynx and will feel emptiness in the mouth.
• When the tongue will press against the gland it gets stimulated and there will be an accumulation of fluid in the mouth, the tongue is up so it is not possible to swallow the saliva.
• While bringing down the tongue to a natural position the taste of saliva is accumulated inside the mouth.
• In the beginning, the taste will be bitter and there will be signs of detoxification. By practicing, the bitter taste becomes sweet like honey and this is the Amrita, the bliss of nectar.

BENEFITS OF KHECHARI MUDRA

• Relaxes mind
• Helpful in spiritual growth
• Strengthen the intuition power
• Heals the Chakras
• Controls anger
• Releases nectar of Amrita from the upper cavity which helps in achieving immense energy and long life.
• Builds a strong immune system
• Stimulates the release of Neurotransmitters like dopamine, which is helpful in calming and soothing properties.
• Relieves symptoms of aging and secretes the growth hormone known as Anti-aging Elixir.
• Prevents bad breath (Halitosis)

WORKING OF KHECHARI MUDRAS

The throat in our body is the junction between the first five chakras and between two chakras. Prana flows at the level of the throat level which gets interrupted and the brain doesn't get enough prana.

Khechari Mudra is the 'King of Mudras' as it has the capability to stimulate the master gland of the body.

CONCLUSION

The tongue is a muscular organ which manipulates food for chewing and swallowing as part of the digestive system which is the primary organ of taste. Mewing is an effective alternative jaw alignment surgery. It comes from the work of British Orthodontist John Mew which focuses on the position of the tongue to maintain the jaw posture. Khechari mudra can be well practiced and is the mudra of the Yoga Sadhana. Further, we discussed the various stages of khechari mudras.