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Posted on 12/23/2017 by Fariba Mutschler |
 Your newborn son or daughter may be having tongue thrust, but that is actually normal until he or she is half a year old.
This behavior is not a problem with the infant. However, if your child is more than a year old and having some speech impediment. This is something that you should have a dentist checked. In the United States, around 67 percent of children 5 to 8 years old that have speech problems or orthodontic issues have some form of tongue thrusts. In fact, some states have it at 95%, for the younger ones. What is Tongue Thrusting?To put it simply, tongue thrusting is literally what it sounds like. It is when someone thrusts their tongue forward against the front teeth or in between when they swallow food. Due to constant pressure on the teeth, the alignment will be compromised, which leads to some impediments in speech. While genetics is a big factor whether or not your child may develop tongue thrusting, the habit of sucking thumbs, artificial nipples and even allergies may cause tongue thrusting. Tongue thrusting affects speech due to the changing of teeth alignment, Lisping sounds, especially the S sound, may sound very mouth and airy. The J, SH, CH and ZH sounds are also affected. By age 4 to 6 months, your baby should have lost this habit of thrusting their tongue. Research shows that if by age four the tongue thrusting is still retained; the child will need some type of training program to remove that tongue thrusting or else it will be strengthened and may even remain until adulthood. However, not all lisps are due to tongue thrusting and some children may be having involuntary thrusting of their tongue. You can visit us so that we can discuss what would work for you and diagnose this as early as possible so that your child will have better speech patterns for the rest of his or her life. If you have any questions or would like to schedule an appointment, please call us at 971-470-0045 today. |
Great Grins for Kids gets our highest rating. The dentists and staff are highly professional, yet compassionate and friendly. We have had experience with other dental practices that don't measure up. Getting our kids to Great Grins was a wonderful upgrade for our family. You set the bar very high! ~ Annabelle C. Read More Testimonials |
