A facial feature that can enhance your overall facial aesthetic is your mouth. Typically, a slightly wider mouth is attractive. So, how can you make your mouth wider?
You can make your mouth wider by getting surgery. The surgery you need will depend on your case, but a surgeon will usually make incisions at your lips’ sides to widen your mouth. You can also use a mouth brace/splint and do mouth stretches to naturally and slowly widen your mouth.
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Why Does The Width of My Mouth Matter?
Your mouth is one of the most noticeable facial features. It is usually the feature that people notice after your eyes and eyebrows (given that you have no other distracting features).
If you have the ideal mouth width, you can easily have a full, wide smile without trying.
Additionally, there is a strong connection between wider mouths and leadership. Studies show that people with wider mouths are more likely to win the U.S. senate (Re et al., 2016). While it does not guarantee that they are better leaders, it gives people the perception they are.
The width of the mouth is also important for facial harmony. Ideally, the mouth should line up with the medial limbal width of the eyes:
What Is the Ideal Mouth Width?
Going by the golden ratio, the ideal mouth should have a lateral width of around 1.6 times the nose’s width. That ratio is the most aesthetically pleasing one.
As for your whole relaxed mouth to nose ratio, the ideal horizontal width is around 1.62:1. This is with a mouth with sealed lips. That ratio looks good on both genders. However, a wider nose is more masculine, so men are allowed to have wider noses and a smaller ratio.
However, the neoclassical canon ideal mouth width may slightly differ. The neoclassical canon believes that the ideal mouth ratio is 1.618:1 (Schmid et al., 2006).
According to the same study, the perception of beauty only begins to drop at 1.8:1. Therefore, wider mouths are typically more attractive.
Generally speaking, you want your mouth to be at least 1.5-1.8 times wider than your nose when your mouth is resting.
How Can I Make My Mouth Wider?
Surgery
There are surgeries like “fishtail flap” procedures that can help you widen your mouth. However, they are typically done for people who have conditions like microstomia, which is an abnormally small mouth opening.
Some surgeons are willing to do the procedure to widen mouths for aesthetic purposes only. They usually adopt the techniques from other mouth widening surgeries to help you achieve the ideal mouth width.
Typically, a surgeon may offer you a bilateral oral commissurotomy then a commissuroplasty. In the first procedure, a surgeon will cut your mouth. The second procedure will rearrange the enlarged mouth’s muscles to minimize scarring and keep the mouth functional.
In many cases, the surgeon may perform a lip lift as well. It will help prevent a “droopy” look since your mouth suddenly got larger. Additionally, you may have fine-line scars. Some patients may need a small scar revision.
Mouth Brace/Splint Device
Some people use a mouth brace/splint device to widen their mouths slowly. The idea is to stretch the mouth and neighboring cheek muscles to gradually widen the mouth at the lips vermillion without tearing it.
Some devices include a microstomia prevention apparatus. It’s for people to keep their lips from closing because of microstomia.
You can put the device between your lips while smiling widely. The force from the device and you stretching your mouth encourages your mouth to get wider slowly.
However, the mouth stretching will definitely not be comfortable, especially if you are not used to it. People say that it feels uncomfortable for the first few days, but it gets easier the more you use it.
Mouth Stretches
You can try to do mouth stretches to encourage your mouth to get wider. It is similar to using a mouth brace. The main difference is that you will be stretching your lips and muscles without a device.
Exercise 1:
- Smile as wide as you can without opening your lips.
- Hold for 10 seconds or longer. Repeat as needed.
Exercise 2:
- Open your mouth to expose some of your teeth (not all).
- Stretch your mouth as wide as possible
- Hold for 10 seconds or longer. Repeat as needed.
It may take longer for you to see visible results and requires extreme dedication. However, it could be an ideal option if you do not want to get surgery or use a splint.
