What are oral habits?
Oral habits are repetitive behavior patterns which can cause harmful effects on the dentofacial structures.
What are the various types of oral habits?
Various harmful oral habits are thumb sucking, tongue thrusting or retained infantile sallow pattern, lip sucking or biting, mouth breathing, nail biting, bruxism and chin propping.
Are oral habits harmful?
Yes oral habits can be harmful for the teeth and the face. Prolonged oral habits can cause proclination and malalignment of teeth. The face also gets affected depending on the kind of oral habit. There could be a lengthening of the face, shortening of the upper lip, protrusion of upper jaw, decrease in cheek fullness and dropping of corners of the eyes. The amount of dento- facial effect is dependent on the frequency, intensity and duration of the habit.
At what age are oral habits treated?
Treatment of oral habits can begin early by proper education of parents followed by gentle reminders given to the child. Active intervention usually begins when the child is 6 years old. Ask your pediatric dentist for various reminder and mechanotherapies for oral habits.
How are oral habits treated?
An individualized approach is required for treatment of oral habits. Treatment modalities to control habits may include child/parent counseling, behavior modification techniques, myofunctional therapy and appliance therapy. During initial years, when child is less than 6 years old, reminder therapy is the best treatment. When the child is greater than 6 years old, some active intervention may be required like use of some intra oral appliance. Your pediatric dentist will give you various options based on the habit of the child.
CDC Gurgaon is the first branch of Children’s Dental Center in India. It’s aim is to achieve good dental health for your child through clinical expertise, compassion, understanding and education. It strives to build a strong relationship with child patients based on tender, love and care.
