Has a dental professional ever told you that you have a tongue thrust? A tongue thrust is a habit where you push your tongue against the back of your teeth when you swallow. Normally, your tongue should be pressed against the roof of your mouth when you swallow.
Why it matters?
Teeth are positioned in a balance between the pressure of the tongue pushing the teeth outward, and pressure from the cheeks pulling the teeth inward. When the tongue is constantly pressing on the back of the teeth, it can overpower the cheeks. This pressure can cause the teeth to space apart and sometimes to flare. Orthodontics can fix the position of the teeth, but the teeth will not be stable if the tongue thrust is not addressed.
How can you fix a tongue thrust habit?
We can provide exercises to help you retrain your tongue to be in the right position when you swallow. For example, you can try to hold a Cheerio on the roof of your mouth when you swallow to get used to the new tongue position. We can also place reminder buttons, known as tongue tamers, on the back of your teeth to encourage you to keep your tongue back. These buttons are a little sharp so when your tongue touches them, it retreats back to where it belongs.
Questions?
Check out our video on TikTok or Instagram @bestorthonc to see a real life tongue thrust example! Do you have questions about tongue thrust or wonder if you have one? Call/text us at 704-782-5146 or reach out on social media!