Can Correcting an Overbite be Beneficial?

Many kids and adults suffer from a type of overbite referred to as Malocclusions. This type of overbite can be caused by various factors that could occur during childhood or adulthood. Some reasons as to why overbites occur are due to childhood habits like thumbsucking, lengthened bottle-feeding, and tongue-thrusting. You might think that only children can have an overbite but one can have overbite issues in adulthood as well. Adults can cause an overbite to occur with their teeth from habits such as nail biting and chewing on the eraser on a pencil head. Overbites can also sometimes happen from hereditary or abnormal jaws. The important factor is making sure that one doesn’t acquire bad habits as to cause an overbite from occurring.

If you or your kids suffer from Malocclusions, don’t worry because an overbite correction can happen through orthodontic treatment. Your Orthodontist will first examine the mouth and the position of the jaws and then determine what course of treatment is best suitable depending on alignment. During the examination, your orthodontist will take both x-rays and impressions to help get a detailed view of the alignment going on in both the upper and lower jaw area. Once the examination is over, then comes the process of getting teeth straightened with the help of appliances that will help guide the teeth and help straighten and fix the overbite. The length of treatment will depend on how much correction teeth need and how well the appliances work on the teeth.

Don’t worry about if you’re too old or your kids are too young to go through overbite correction. When it comes to correcting an overbite, the best age is generally very young as the teeth are still growing and moving into place. If you went for orthodontic treatment at a young age then more than likely you won’t need to worry about it when you’ve grown up. However, if you’re older and are in need of an overbite correction then you still have that option. If you or your kids need overbite correction than speak with your orthodontist so they can work with you to find the perfect treatment plan!