Lower snoring-struggle ratings
Baseline → Week 3
The Hostage Tape study
The Hostage Tape Mouth-Taping Study
Participants reported improved sleep, sleep that felt deeper, and less snoring, dry mouth and mouth breathing. Here’s what the three-week Hostage Tape study found and what the results mean.
Explore the findingsWhat changed with mouth tape?
The main findings from participants’ own ratings. Each card shows what was compared.
Lower dry-mouth ratings
Baseline → Week 3
Lower mouth-breathing ratings
Baseline → Week 3
Higher sleep-depth ratings
Final survey · vs no intervention
Compared with no tape and no breathing exercises; 44 participants.
The first three figures show changes in reported ratings from baseline to Week 3. The sleep-depth figure comes from the final survey. These are self-reported results, not recorded snoring, measured airflow or time spent in deep sleep. Individual results vary.
How did mouth tape compare with breathing exercises?
In the randomized comparison, reported snoring frequency, dry mouth and mouth breathing improved significantly with mouth tape. These are separate findings from the percentages above. Sleep-depth ratings did not differ significantly between the two routines.
What does “statistically significant” mean?
The analysis found evidence of a difference between the two study conditions. It does not mean everyone improved or that you’ll experience the same result.
How the study worked
A three-week study with an active comparison: breathing exercises.
- Week 1
Everyone tried mouth tape
Participants followed a guided mouth-taping protocol.
- Weeks 2–3
Compare the two routines
Participants were assigned a random order for mouth tape and breathing exercises.
- At the end
Compare the answers
The researchers analyzed symptom ratings, sleep questionnaires and final feedback.
117 people completed the baseline or screener; 81 qualified. There were 52 Week 1 responses and 44 final responses. The randomized analysis included 45 participants.
What the study does and doesn’t tell us
The findings support improvements in reported snoring frequency, dry mouth and mouth breathing compared with breathing exercises.
The main measures of daytime sleepiness and sleep disturbance did not show a significant difference between the two routines.
This was a small, short study in screened adults using self-reported outcomes. Individual results vary. It does not establish that mouth tape treats sleep apnea.
In participants’ own words
“The tape helped minimize snoring and when I did snore, it was less loud.”
“Best mouth tape I have ever used, stayed on, helped with sleep.”
Individual experiences from the study; results are not guaranteed.
Your questions about the study
Did Hostage Tape help with snoring?
Participants reported less frequent snoring with mouth tape than with breathing exercises in the randomized comparison. Separately, snoring-struggle ratings fell 78.9% from baseline to Week 3. That percentage describes a change in self-reported ratings, not a measurement of snoring sounds.
Did participants report deeper sleep?
Yes. In the final survey, 44 participants rated sleep depth 39.9% higher with mouth tape than with no tape and no breathing exercises. This describes how sleep felt, not measured time in deep sleep. Sleep-depth ratings did not differ significantly between mouth tape and breathing exercises.
How was the Hostage Tape study conducted?
SleepSpace and Dr. Dan Gartenberg conducted the three-week study. Everyone used mouth tape in Week 1. For Weeks 2 and 3, participants were assigned a random order of mouth tape and breathing exercises. Researchers compared participants’ symptom ratings and sleep questionnaires. The randomized analysis included 45 participants; 44 people completed the final survey.
What do the percentages mean?
The final analysis reported a 78.9% decrease in snoring-struggle ratings from baseline to Week 3. That is a change in reported scores. It does not mean 78.9% fewer recorded snores, the percentage of people who improved, or the difference versus breathing exercises.
The same baseline-to-Week-3 analysis reported 67.7% lower mouth-breathing ratings and 69.1% lower dry-mouth ratings. These changes answer a different question from the randomized comparison above.
How were the results analyzed?
The study used a single-blind, active-control design. Everyone used mouth tape in Week 1; the order of mouth tape and breathing exercises was randomized for Weeks 2 and 3. The comparison accounted for the study week, starting scores and repeated responses from the same person.
In that comparison, mouth breathing (p < .001), dry mouth (p = .009) and snoring frequency (p = .013) showed significant differences. Snoring struggle did not meet the usual significance threshold (p = .065).
The main sleepiness measure, Epworth (p = .783), and the sleep-disturbance measure, PROMIS (p = .865), did not differ significantly. The final sleep-depth comparison versus no intervention was significant (p < .001); versus breathing exercises, it was not (p = .213).
Where does this information come from?
This page uses the final results presentation for the SleepSpace Breath Health Study, supplied to Hostage Tape. The presentation reports results after the intervention assignments were revealed to the analysts.
Different results use different sets of available responses, so sample sizes vary. This page summarizes the presentation and does not describe it as a peer-reviewed publication.
About Dr. Dan GartenbergIs mouth tape right for everyone?
No. You need to be able to breathe comfortably through your nose. Follow the product instructions and warnings. Do not use mouth tape with nasal obstruction or congestion. Ask a healthcare professional about sleep or breathing concerns. Mouth tape does not replace prescribed sleep apnea treatment.
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