Our orthodontist, Dr. Rehana Khan, wants your child to have the strongest and healthiest smile possible. Unfortunately, if your child has misaligned teeth, this smile goal is harder to achieve. This is because misaligned teeth create hard-to-clean spaces in the smile that harbor bacteria and plaque. This then creates an environment prone to dental issues. So, it’s best to help your child have the straightest smile possible. Fortunately, there are many things you can do to help your child prevent tooth misalignment. Those things are:

-Try to limit oral fixation habits: Some of these habits include using a pacifier, thrusting the tongue and sucking the thumb. These habits cause tooth misalignments because they place undue pressure on the teeth and make them shift. It’s best to help your child curb these habits as much as possible.

-Bring your child into our office at an early age: Our orthodontist can examine your child’s smile as early as age 7 to make sure everything is on the right track. If problems are detected, she will have the tips you need to help your child have the top-notch smile they deserve.

-Consider using space maintainers: Space maintainers help your child maintain spaced teeth when things start to get a little crowded in the mouth. The crowding is natural because your child’s 20 teeth are being replaced with 32 permanent teeth all while the jaw is still small. The space maintainers can help keep teeth in place, save space for permanent teeth and prevent overlapping.

Call Santa Monica Orthodontics today at 310-393-3344 if you have any questions. Our orthodontic team is happy to help you in any way we can, even if it’s just by giving you the answers you’re looking for and teaching you more about preventing tooth misalignment in Santa Monica, California. We look forward to hearing from and helping you!