Does My Bite Ever Change?

Most people know that their bite changes during the day. Sitting up, the jaw is more open, and our teeth are much closer together. However, when we lie down to sleep at night, our jaws fall into a more relaxed state and tend to drop back as they do. When this happens while we're asleep, it's called "retrognathia" or "hypoglossal muscular atrophy," which refers to the difference in orientation of your tongue concerning your lower jaw.

Does My Bite Ever Change?

The short answer is yes. Your teeth may have moved, your jaw may have shifted as you age and lost bone mass, or your teeth might even be shifting in response to stress on your jaw joints. The goal is to look at all these things and decide what changes should be made and how those changes can happen.

Sometimes changing a habit can be easier than changing an appliance, even if that appliance was just purchased last week. When it comes to transforming a practice, though, I always tell our patients that they need to want it to be successful. And here is where we need to look at this from the dental side. Dentists are likely to have less patience to encourage biting and chewing habits even though our patients often need it. Patients should discuss their personal goals with their dentist because they can guide the patient in the right direction.

Can Teeth Move?

Sometimes the answer is yes, and that is healthy. Your permanent teeth can be moved toward your canines by closing your front teeth and holding them there for a minute. The longer you keep them in this position, the more room they will move into your mouth and the more room you will have for an upper incisor to come through. If you want your molars to move up toward your incisors, use a mirror to look through your front teeth and ensure all of the molars are together under them. Hold your lower lip with a finger so it does not move with any jaw movement. It is even easier to drive at night when you are asleep and rest your mouth a bit.

I have often used this technique with people with no teeth in their upper jaw, and I can almost tell which ones will work compared to those that won't work because of how they hold the lip. But it is not a scientific way of determining if the molars will be in the correct position unless you have an orthodontist nearby.