A new form of dental care is gaining attention and is being offered in smaller towns.
The Myo Mend Studio, a new therapy service, officially opened in Strathmore on Tuesday (July 1).
The business offers a therapy that aims to address common issues like snoring, sleep apnea, and oral dysfunction by targeting the muscles of the face and mouth.
The studio specializes in myofunctional therapy, a practice that is becoming increasingly mainstream but differs from traditional dental and orthodontic care.
"It's basically physical therapy for your facial muscles, your tongue muscles, and the back of your throat muscles," explained Brianne Wilson, a registered dental hygienist and owner of the Myo Mend Studio. "It works to correct myofunction disorders of your mouth."
Wilson revealed these disorders can lead to a range of symptoms such as sleep apnea, chronic snoring, and mouth breathing. In children, the effects may include bed wetting, difficulty sleeping, speech issues, and enlarged tonsils. Many cases are linked to tongue-ties or other anatomical issues.
Wilson was first introduced to the therapy while searching for solutions to help her daughter.
"I stumbled into it trying to find a solution for my daughter's mouth breathing," Wilson said. "She used to be a huge mouth breather. You could hear her across the house. She would snore very loudly, and she did not sleep well."
After digging through some research, Wilson enrolled her daughter in myofunctional therapy. Wilson noted that the results and impacts of the therapy grew her love and appreciation for it.
"Now, she doesn't snore at all, and her lips are nice and sealed," Wilson said. "She's in a better mood. She's actually grown more than she's ever grown."
Wilson noted that people are starting to look for root causes behind their health issues instead of relying on temporary solutions.
It's more of an interceptive therapy, rather than just a Band-Aid," Wilson said. "I think we're just starting to realize how detrimental mouth breathing, snoring, and sleep apnea are becoming. It's a small epidemic."
According to Wilson, up to 80 to 90 per cent of people may have some form of sleep apnea, but only 10 to 20 per cent of cases are diagnosed.
She also points to crooked teeth as a growing concern. While braces can straighten teeth temporarily, they don't address the underlying muscular and functional issues.
"People wear retainers, as well as permanent retainers like wires, and if you didn't have that, I would say almost everybody would have some kind of relapse," Wilson said. "But we put those retainers on to hold [the teeth] where they're going. Again, kind of a Band-Aid rather than fixing our musculature and our face, neck, and mouth."
However, Wilson believes the industry is beginning to evolve.
"More and more orthodontist offices are adding a myofunctional therapist into their office," Wilson said. "It's starting to creep up into Canada as a treatment."
Wilson credits a shift in public awareness and a desire for permanent solutions as reasons for the rising popularity of myofunctional therapy.
"Parents are looking for ways to fix the problems rather than just mask them, and I think as a whole society, we're more aware of issues and we're more willing to treat things than we were before."
To mark the opening of her business, Wilson is offering $60 off initial assessments. As awareness grows, she hopes more families in Strathmore will explore the long-term benefits of addressing the root causes of dental and sleep-related issues.