Drooling during sleep is a common and usually harmless occurrence, which can help you feel more at ease about this natural process.
Typically, saliva production increases during the day and decreases at night, but it continues to serve vital functions by moistening the mouth and throat, which helps maintain comfort during sleep.
In some cases, this ongoing saliva production can lead to drooling, especially if saliva escapes from the mouth during deep sleep.
While occasional drooling is perfectly normal, excessive or frequent drooling may sometimes signal an underlying health concern, such as neurological or muscular issues.
Understanding why drooling happens during sleep can empower you to recognize normal patterns and identify when to seek medical advice, fostering confidence in managing this issue.
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Why You Drool in Your Sleep
So why do you drool in your sleep so much? You may produce too much saliva while sleeping, or have trouble keeping it inside your mouth if you experience impaired swallowing. Although drooling during sleep is quite normal, excessive drooling may have underlying causes.
- Sleeping Position – When you sleep on your back, you say, saliva will generally stay inside your mouth and travel back inside your throat and to your stomach. In this case, gravity helps to keep the saliva from coming out of your mouth, which in turn prevents drooling. Unfortunately, if you enjoy sleeping on your side or stomach with your mouth open, you’re likely to do it during your sleep. You may take some measures to breathe through your nose, rather than your mouth, to keep your mouth closed.
- Allergies and Infections – People who may have an infection or a cold, flu, or even allergies may struggle to breathe through their nose and thus try to breathe through their mouth, which can cause saliva to escape through the mouth and cause them to drool.
- GERD – Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), also known as heartburn, can lead to drooling and dysphagia, which is difficulty swallowing. Individuals with GERD may feel as if they have a lump in their throat, which can, in turn, cause them to drool much more often.
- Sleep Apnea – Obstructive sleep apnea is another condition that may lead to sleep-related breathing issues, which in turn can lead to you drooling more. Sleep apnea can include snoring, gasps for breath, choking while you sleep, and waking up at night. It can also lead to morning headaches, difficulty focusing during the day, and daytime sleepiness.
- Bruxism – Bruxism. It’s a condition where you grind your teeth during sleep. This is because you are breathing through your mouth, and saliva is more likely to drip from your mouth during sleep, causing drooling. Bruxism can also cause snoring, restless sleep, shorter sleep times, and stomach sleeping.
- Side Effects of Medication – Some medications can cause you to produce excess saliva during the night, which may lead to drooling. These are some antibiotics, antipsychotic drugs, and medications used to treat Alzheimer’s disease.
- You may also have an underlying medical condition that may be causing excessive drooling because your nervous system stimulates your salivary glands. If drooling persists despite preventive measures or worsens over time, consult a healthcare professional to identify possible neurodegenerative disorders or Other medical causes.
How to Prevent Drooling While You Sleep
The quickest fix for drooling while you sleep is to sleep on your back, where gravity will prevent the saliva from seeping out of your mouth and rather send it back down your throat to your stomach.
Then again, you can also use sleeping aids, such as a wedge-style pillow, which will keep you in a more upright position, which in turn will help the saliva to go down your throat, rather than to seep out of your mouth.
You can take some measures to roll the breath out of your nose, then your mouth, such as using a mask or a mouth tab, which will also help to prevent drooling.
As I’ve said, the best way to prevent drooling while you sleep is to sleep on your back, which can make you feel more in control of your comfort with the right pillow.
Features of a Good Pillow for Droolers
- Fill – The filling of your pillow would most likely be your preference. Some of us enjoy a soft pillow. Others have a firm pillow. However, I do recommend memory foam all-light ex-firm pillows, as they are more comfortable and supportive. If you would like a softer pillow, something like a feather or down-alternative pillow will be ideal.
- Loft – If you are going to try to sleep on your back to prevent drooling, I would recommend a flatter, lower-loft pillow.
- Cover – For drooling, I would recommend a waterproof pillow cover if you can find a pillow with one. Most pillows do come with a removable cover that you can wash, which is also ideal if you drool.
- Design – You can choose from any design pillar from the regular straightforward standard pillar to a cervical pillow, or a more contoured pillow, whichever is most comfortable for you. I would recommend a low-contoured pillow that supports your neck when sleeping on your back.
Reviews: The Best Pillows for Droolers
Here are some of my top pillow choices for people who tend to drool.
1
- The Aeris Wedge pillow keeps you in an upright position to prevent excessive drooling.
- It is the perfect pillow for individuals with GERD, excessive drooling, and similar conditions.
- The Wedge Pillow has a curved design and memory foam fill.
- It has a removable and washable cover for your convenience.
2
- The Elvis is a cervical-style pillow that properly supports your head and neck when sleeping on your back.
- Sleeping on your back is more suitable if you tend to drool.
- It has a memory foam fill and a removable hypoallergenic cover.
- The pillow has an ergonomic and supportive shape.
3
- The Cushion Lab pillow is a comfortable option for side and back sleepers, especially if you tend to drool.
- It places zero pressure and offers cloud-soft cushioning.
- The pillowcase is cool and fresh and can be removed for washing.
- The pillowcase also protects your pillow from drooling.
4
- The Relax Home Life wedge pillow is perfect for drooling.
- Because you are in an elevated position, you will be less likely to drool.
- The pillow has a thicker, more absorbent bamboo cover.
- The bamboo cover is likewise removable for washing.
5
- The Pulatree cervical pillow is ideal for back sleeping to prevent drooling.
- It has a layered design that slightly elevates your head, making it easier to breathe.
- The pillow is memory foam with an absorbent, washable cover.
- It has a contoured and supportive shape.
6
- Here we have a four-piece Orthopedic pillow design.
- The wedge back will elevate you to prevent drooling; there is also an additional wedge to place under your knees for added comfort.
- You can sleep comfortably with no drooling.
- The pillow has a 45D memory foam fill that is soft and firm.
Index Table: Top Rated Pillows for Droolers
| No. | Product | Image | Features | Brand | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aeris Wedge - Wedge Pillow for Drooling |  |
| Aeris | 98 |
| 2 | Elviros Cervical - Cervical Pillow for Drooling |  |
| Elviros | 97.9 |
| 3 | Cushion Lab Deep Sleep - Pillow for Drooling |  |
| Cushion Lab | 97.6 |
| 4 | Relax Home Life Wedge - Pillow for Drooling |  |
| Relax Home Life | 97 |
| 5 | Pulatree cervical - Double Pillow for Drooling |  |
| Pulatree | 97.8 |
| 6 | Luxe Casa Orthopedic - Pillow Set for Droolers |  |
| Luxe Casa | 97 |
