Tongue thrusting happens when the tongue pushes forward against the teeth during swallowing instead of resting higher inside the mouth. It sounds harmless. But if that pressure happens again and again, day after day, it can gradually affect tooth position.<\/p>\r\n
Teeth respond to pressure over time. So, if your tongue repeatedly presses against the lower front teeth, those teeth may slowly move forward or spread apart. The gap might start tiny. You may barely notice it until photos make it obvious.<\/p>\r\n
You might also notice that your tongue sits against your bottom teeth when your mouth is relaxed. Or you may find yourself pushing your tongue forward while swallowing. Sometimes there’s a slight lisp too, although not everyone with tongue thrusting has one.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 A visible gap between the lower front teeth, especially if it seems to be getting wider.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Your tongue presses forward during swallowing, which is easy to miss until someone points it out.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Speech feels slightly different. A lisp can sometimes show up, though plenty of people have tongue thrusting without one.<\/p>\r\n
\u2022 Teeth that look like they’re slowly changing position, and honestly, gradual movement is the part people tend to overlook.<\/p>\r\n
Yes, but moving the teeth is only part of the job. If tongue thrusting continues after orthodontic treatment, the teeth can shift again. That makes treating the underlying habit a smart move rather than simply closing the space and hoping for the best.<\/p>\r\n
An orthodontist can check how your teeth and bite are positioned. A dentist may also look for gum problems or other reasons the teeth have moved. If tongue function is contributing to the issue, you may be referred for exercises that teach the tongue to rest and swallow differently.<\/p>\r\n
Braces or clear aligners can close the gap when tooth movement is needed. But I wouldn’t rush straight into orthodontics before figuring out why the teeth moved in the first place. Otherwise, you’re fixing the result while ignoring the habit.<\/p>\r\n
A new gap deserves attention, particularly if it’s getting larger. Sudden tooth movement can sometimes point to gum or bone problems, not just tongue pressure.<\/p>\r\n
Visit our page on composite bonding London<\/strong><\/a> to explore treatment options, costs, and expert advice.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" How Tongue Thrusting Creates a Gap Tongue thrusting happens when the tongue pushes forward against the teeth during swallowing instead of resting higher inside the mouth. It sounds harmless. But if that pressure happens again and again, day after day, it can gradually affect tooth position. Teeth respond to pressure over time. So, if your … Continue reading Gap in Bottom Teeth Due to Tongue Thrusting<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5860"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5860\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5947,"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5860\/revisions\/5947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.envysmile.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}