Mewing isn’t just for cats—Gen Z males have made this bizarre oral heath exercise a TikTok trend
If you’re not in the trenches of TikTok—or a member of Gen Z—you may think “mewing” is just the sound that kittens make. However, British orthodontist Dr. John Mew is responsible for this eponymous oral health exercise that has been blowing up on social media recently.
Mewing and “orthotropics”
Mew, an orthodontist whose dental license was recently revoked by the General Dental Council, invented the mewing technique in the 1980s.1 He also came up with his own branch of orthodontics called “orthotropics”—a practice Mew coined that’s meant to sharpen the jawline and overall face shape through facial and oral posture and exercises. Through various chewing tools and at-home techniques, mewing is designed to chisel and strengthen the jaw-particularly in adolescents.1
But how, exactly, does one “mew?”
It’s a straightforward, repetitive method that can be done discreetly—and at any time. Essentially, mewing involves flattening the tongue on the palate of the mouth, applying upward pressure, before releasing and starting again.1 It can be assisted and accompanied by chewing hard gum and/or jaw exercisers. Someone who is mewing correctly should feel mild pressure across the middle of their face, jaw, and chin.1
However, chewing deliberately hard gum for extended periods of time can cause broken or loose teeth and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) issues.2
Gen Z males and “looksmaxxing”
Over the past few years, mewing has become just one facet of an ongoing social media trend called “looksmaxxing.” Looksmaxxing is a male-centric form of self-improvement that encourages people to subtly change their physical appearance without cosmetic or esthetic procedures. At its core, it’s supposed to make people as attractive as possible by enhancing their natural features.3
And, since today’s beauty standards celebrate men with strong jawlines, mewing has become a major component of looksmaxxing. Many teenage and young adult male influencers advocate for mewing on their TikTok profiles-so much so that some of them have built an online presence on the practice.