The reality of the Gen Z viral internet hack for jawline mewing is far from what is shown on social media.
According to Health, mewing is a popular tongue exercise that aims to reshape the face, particularly the jawline, of a person.
Family medicine practitioner Colleen Clayton, MD, explained, “Mewing is an exercise you do with your tongue several times a day. It’s a technique that some people feel might help change the aesthetics of the face or jawline.”
Related: Chewing gum's hidden dangers: Alarming levels of microplastics uncovered
Mewing is named after an orthodontist, Dr John Mew, who developed the technique back in the 1970s to improve misalignments in the teeth, sinuses, jaw and facial structure.
He also believes that the exercise could help with issues linked to speech, sleep apnoea, breathing and other issues related to jaw and teeth. But today most of the people use it for cosmetic purposes only.
Clayton also clarified, “Unfortunately, research doesn’t support using mewing for any of these things. The evidence soundly suggests that it isn’t effective for any of the claims.”
Even the experts warned that mewing could change the position of teeth, especially in kids and teenagers, and could also lead to worse misalignment.
The orthodontist also highlighted that reshaping your jawline or face requires more treatments like fillers, facial contouring and plastic surgery.
Related: How common mouth bacteria reduces head and neck cancer cells?
