When you swallow, does the tip of your tongue remain touching your palate (the roof of your mouth), or does it push against the back of your upper teeth? If it touches your teeth, you might have a habit called tongue thrust.
Tongue thrust can cause an overbite or open bite, where your top and bottom teeth don’t touch even when your mouth is closed. Over time, the repeated pressure from your tongue against the back of your teeth pushes your teeth forward.
Sometimes, you can break the habit with myofunctional therapy and tongue exercises that retrain the tongue to chew, swallow, and speak differently.
For those who can’t break the habit themselves, Zombek Orthodontics can help with a tongue crib. This device can stop the tongue-thrusting habit and save your smile! Orthodontic treatment, such as braces or Invisalign, will repair any bite issues from tongue thrust.
What is a tongue thrust? Tongue thrust is habitually moving your tongue forward during speech or swallowing. The tongue may also sit against the teeth at rest.
Tongue thrust usually begins with infants and can be made worse by pacifier use or thumbsucking. It is classified as an orofacial myofunctional disorder (OMD).
While tongue thrust starts in childhood, it can still happen into adulthood. Signs of tongue thrust in adults include:
Why is it so important to stop tongue thrust? Eventually, the pressure of your tongue will move your upper teeth forward, creating an overjet, where the upper teeth are angled outward, or an overbite, a gap between the upper and lower teeth.
There are two main types of tongue thrust treatment — therapy and a tongue thrust appliance. Tongue thrust therapy involves a series of exercises that teach your tongue to move correctly and sit back from your teeth.
The team at Zombek Orthodontics will teach you several exercises to do at home to get rid of your tongue thrust. You can do these exercises several times a day. Eventually, your tongue learns to sit in its proper place and move better when you speak or eat.
If therapy doesn’t fix the tongue thrust reflex, we have appliances that can interrupt your tongue thrust so that you break the habit. One of these appliances is a tongue crib.
A tongue crib is a device made up of two brands that slide over your molars and a wire that arcs over the roof of your mouth (your palate). That wire holds one of several types of “cribs” in the front.
There are different types of tongue cribs.
Removable tongue cribs do exist, but they aren’t effective. Training the tongue to move differently when speaking, chewing, and swallowing requires constant reinforcement. Bonded tongue cribs provide feedback around the clock, even when you’re sleeping, reducing treatment time and creating lasting change.
Treatment time with a tongue thrust appliance will depend on the patient. How severe is your tongue-thrusting habit? Is there a thumbsucking habit as well?
The average treatment time with a tongue thrust appliance is 6-12 months. Dr. Zombek will be able to evaluate your tongue-thrust habit and determine how long you’ll need to wear a tongue crib.
We don’t just use tongue cribs for tongue thrusts. They’re also very effective in stopping a thumb-sucking habit. Thumbsucking should stop by the age of 2, as should pacifier use. The longer these continue, the more damage they can do.
A tongue crib makes it nearly impossible for the child to insert their thumb and suck on it. Trying to rest it on the tongue crib can be painful to the thumb.
Thumbsucking can encourage tongue thrust. It can damage the palate and upper and lower teeth, causing an overbite, underbite, or open bite. Thumbsucking presses the palate into the space for the nasal passages, which can cause breathing issues.
The longer your child sucks their thumb, the worse these dental and other health issues become. That’s why it’s vital to stop thumbsucking as soon as possible.
If your child is nearing kindergarten and still sucking their thumb, contact Zombek Orthodontics. We will evaluate your child and decide which tongue-thrust device would work best. We can also discuss orthodontic treatment for kids to repair the damage this habit may have caused.
Tongue thrust and thumbsucking are damaging habits to teeth, jaws, and even the nasal passages. These two habits are common in small children, but you need to break these habits as soon as possible. If a child can’t do it on their own or with therapy, then tongue-thrust appliances may be the way to go. A child may be ready for a tongue crib to stop their habit by seven years old.
Zombek Orthodontics can treat your child’s tongue thrusting or thumbsucking. Your first step is to schedule an appointment with Dr. Zombek. He will evaluate your child’s case and provide the best solution for your child.
Dr. Zombek can recommend therapy to help you at any age and the best braces or Invisalign treatment to repair teeth damaged by these habits.
Breaking bad habits is vital to our oral health. Contact Zombek Orthodontics if you think you or your child may need tongue thrust therapy or a tongue crib. We are here to help!
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