Have you noticed as your son or daughter has friends over, more and more of them have braces? Does your child need orthodontic care? No one could say for sure except an orthodontist and possibly your child’s dentist, but the following are some signs you could pay attention to in the meantime.
Sucking Their Thumb
Many children suck their thumbs, and most are able to quit the habit between two and four years of age. If your child sucked his or her thumb longer than that and permanent teeth were growing in during that time, you may notice the upper teeth are unnaturally protruding. Orthodontic care can help with that! Prolonged use of a binky or drinking out of a bottle could also cause the same protruding teeth issue.
Losing Their Teeth Late
If your children’s baby teeth were lost later, the bite may have become misaligned as they grew in. This can also happen when baby teeth are lost too early. As the permanent teeth are trying to grow in among the baby teeth, everything gets pushed around and misaligned. Braces could help by pulling the teeth into alignment once again.
Having Issues with the Jaw
Have you noticed your child has an overbite, crossbite or underbite? These misalignments are not just a cosmetic issue. When the jaws don’t match up correctly, children can have a hard time chewing correctly. This often causes them to chew on their cheeks or bite their tongues as well. Your child might benefit from orthodontic care if you have noticed these things in him or her.
Being a Mouth Breather
If your child doesn’t typically breathe through his or her nose, but prefers to breathe through the mouth, his or her jaw will hang open most of the time. When this happens, the face often develops longer and more narrow. While it may not seem like an orthodontic issue, the narrowness of the face and the jaw prohibits proper growth of the teeth. Braces can help to make space for those teeth again.
Having Crowded Teeth
Sometimes the teeth just grow in and are crowded. They may overlap or be too close together. This issue often causes mouth breathing, discomfort while chewing, lisps, and improper alignment. Braces are a great solution for an overcrowding problem.
Contact an Orthodontist Today
If you feel your child falls into one or more of these categories, it’s probably time to contact an orthodontist, like an orthodontist in San Clemente, CA, from John Redmond Orthodontics. With proper orthodontic care, your child’s smile can return to full health. Call today to get started.
