How To Reduce Your Child's Chances Of Developing Orthodontic Issues
From braces, to retainers, to oral surgery, there are a wealth of techniques now available for dealing with orthodontic issues. Yet the best way to deal with such problems is to prevent them in the first place. If you would like to learn more about how to reduce the chances of your child developing orthodontic problems, read on. This article will outline three effective strategies.
Make pre-birth nutrition a priority.
The development of a child's palate and jaw begin while it is still inside of the womb. Good maternal nutrition is vital to ensure that the developing fetus has the right vitamins and minerals for such formation takes place in a normal fashion. Yet good nutritional habits actually begin long before that, in the months leading up to conception, both for the mother and the father.
A diet rich in vitamins is vital for promoting healthy bone development. A vitamin deficient diet greatly increases your child's risk of developing a bone deformity. Where B group vitamin deficiency is concerned, it also increases the risk of a cleft palate. Alcohol and drug use also raises the risk of defects where jaw development is concerned. Plan to meet with a nutritionist to discuss the types of foods you should be eating.
Breastfeed your infant.
By now it is common knowledge that breastfeeding is the best way to ensure an infant gets all of the necessary nutrition. Yet only more recently are people beginning to appreciate the important effect that breastfeeding has on the developing musculature of a child's face. Breastfeeding acts to promote proper coordination between the jaw and the tongue, in essence teaching the child's face what it's normal resting position should be.
Poor jaw orientation leads to the condition known as malocclusion. This simply refers to upper and lower teeth that do not come together properly, thus making eating more difficult, and increasing the chances of developing other dental issues. Breastfeeding has been shown to lower the odds of developing malocclusion. Whereas breastfeeding for less than three months carries a 32.5% malocclusion rate, breastfeeding for a year or more reduces that rate to only 15.9%.
Ask your dentist to pay attention to your child's tonsils.
Many children suffer from enlarged tonsils. Not only that but, because this condition can be hard to detect, many such cases are never properly diagnosed. Unfortunately, enlarged tonsils lead to problems down the line thanks to the fact that they often block off nasal breathing passages. This increases the tendency to breath through the mouth--a bad habit that can lead to orthodontic issues later in life.