Mewing is an unproven form of
oral posture training
Oral myology (also known as "orofacial myology") is the field of study that involves the evaluation and treatment (known as "orofacial myofunctional therapy") of the oral and facial musculature, including the muscles of the tongue, lips, cheeks, an ...
purported to improve jaw and facial structure.
It was named after Mike and
John Mew
John Mew (1928 – 25 June 2025) was a British orthodontist who was the founder of orthotropics and mewing. Orthotropics is a form of oral posture training that claims to guide facial growth and is not supported by mainstream orthodontists.
...
, British
orthodontists
Orthodontics (also referred to as orthodontia) is a dentistry specialty that addresses the diagnosis, prevention, management, and correction of mal-positioned teeth and jaws, as well as misaligned bite patterns. It may also address the modificati ...
who created the technique as a part of a practice called "
orthotropics".
It involves placing one's tongue at the
roof of the mouth and applying pressure, to change the structure of the jaws.
No credible scientific research has ever proven the efficacy of orthotropics,
and most orthodontists do not view mewing as a viable alternative treatment to
orthognathic surgery
Orthognathic surgery (), also known as corrective jaw surgery or simply jaw surgery, is surgery designed to correct conditions of the jaw and lower face related to structure, growth, airway issues including sleep apnea, TMJ disorders, malocclusio ...
.
Mike Mew was expelled from the
British Orthodontic Society
The British Orthodontic Society (BOS) is a medical association for orthodontists in England. It publishes the '' Journal of Orthodontics''.
The British Orthodontic society represents all orthodontists and dentists carrying out orthodontics ...
and faced a misconduct hearing for posing harm to child patients who underwent his treatments.
In 2024, Mew was struck from the dental register in the United Kingdom.
Since 2019, mewing has received widespread media coverage due to its
virality on social media,
especially in
incel
Incel ( ; a portmanteau of "involuntary celibate") is a term associated with an online subculture of mostly male and heterosexual people who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one. They ofte ...
and
looksmaxxing
Looksmaxxing (sometimes spelled looksmaxing) is a term originating on male incel message boards in the 2010s, referring to a process of maximizing one’s own physical attractiveness. In the 2020s, the term left relatively obscure internet forum ...
subcultures and has been associated with "
brain rot
In Internet culture, brain rot (or brainrot) describes Internet content deemed to be of low quality or value, or the supposed negative psychological and cognitive effects caused by it. The term also more broadly refers to the deleterious effec ...
".
Data from
Google Trends
Google Trends is a website by Google that analyzes the popularity of top search queries in Google Search across various regions and languages. The website uses graphs to compare the search volume of different queries over a certain period of ti ...
indicates that interest in "mewing" began to rise in January 2019.
Its popularity has reportedly also affected school students, with some apparently mewing in class to avoid answering questions when prompted by teachers.
See also
*
Facial toning
Facial toning, or facial exercise, is a type of cosmetic procedure or physical therapy tool which alters facial contours by means of increasing muscle tone and facial volume by promoting muscular hypertrophy, and preventing muscle loss due t ...
References
{{Generation Z slang
Incel subculture
Beauty
Pseudoscience
Internet memes introduced in 2023
Alternative medicine
Palate
Tongue