An open bite is a dental misalignment where the upper and lower teeth do not overlap or touch when the mouth is closed. This condition commonly affects the front teeth, leaving a visible vertical gap that complicates biting, chewing, and speech. While many open bites are treated with traditional orthodontic appliances, a significant number are caused by improper muscle function and oral habits. Addressing these underlying muscular patterns through focused training offers a non-invasive, natural approach to correction. This method involves retraining the tongue, lips, and facial muscles to create a balanced oral resting posture.
Identifying Habit-Driven Causes of Open Bite
The development of an open bite is often related to persistent, low-grade forces exerted on the teeth over long periods. The most significant cause is an incorrect resting posture of the tongue, which should naturally rest entirely against the roof of the mouth. When the tongue rests low, it prevents the proper downward eruption of the posterior teeth or pushes the anterior teeth forward, creating the open gap. This constant, light pressure, which needs to be maintained for at least six hours per day to move teeth, is a greater factor than the momentary pressure exerted during swallowing.
Another major contributor is chronic mouth breathing, which forces the lower jaw to drop and the tongue to adopt a low, forward posture to keep the airway clear. Without the tongue’s natural upward pressure against the palate, the upper jaw fails to develop laterally, becoming narrow and high-arched. This altered structure often leads to a downward and backward rotation of the lower jaw, which increases the vertical space between the upper and lower front teeth.
Prolonged childhood habits also force the teeth out of alignment. Non-nutritive sucking habits, such as thumb or finger sucking or extended pacifier use past the age of three or four, apply direct pressure to the developing teeth. This mechanical force pushes the upper teeth outward and the lower teeth inward, preventing the teeth from meeting.
Myofunctional Exercises for Muscle Retraining
Myofunctional therapy is the primary natural method for correcting habit-driven open bites, focusing on neuromuscular re-education of the oral and facial muscles. The goal is to establish a correct resting position for the tongue, which then guides the proper development of the dental arches and bite. Consistency is paramount, as these exercises must be performed several times daily to retrain muscles that have operated incorrectly for years.
The “Spot” or “Suction” exercise trains the tongue to its proper resting location, known as the alveolar ridge or “n-spot,” just behind the upper front teeth. To perform this, place the tip of the tongue on the spot and suction the entire body of the tongue flat against the palate, creating a vacuum. Once suction is established, you should be able to drop the jaw slightly while the tongue remains firmly held to the roof of the mouth. This can be checked by making a loud “click” sound upon release.
This exercise strengthens the tongue’s ability to maintain upward pressure on the palate. Maintaining this pressure helps to widen the upper arch and stabilize the bite.
Lip seal exercises strengthen the orbicularis oris muscle, which is necessary to maintain lip closure at rest and encourage nasal breathing. The “Pucker Power” or “Lip Pop” involves pressing the lips together firmly and releasing them with a distinct popping sound. Alternatively, the “Spoon Hold” involves holding the handle of a spoon horizontally between the lips, not the teeth, for ten seconds at a time to build muscle endurance.
Proper swallowing technique is retrained by teaching the tongue to move in a wave-like motion from front to back, pushing against the palate rather than forward against the teeth. This is practiced with a small sip of water or saliva, keeping the teeth lightly together. By swallowing without activating the facial muscles and ensuring the tongue tip remains fixed on the “spot,” tongue thrusting is replaced with a mature, muscle-neutral swallowing pattern.
Eliminating Habits Contributing to Open Bite Progression
Active muscle training must be paired with the passive elimination of detrimental oral habits to prevent the open bite from returning. For children, breaking a prolonged thumb-sucking or pacifier habit is crucial, ideally before the permanent teeth erupt. Parents can use positive reinforcement, such as reward charts and verbal praise, to celebrate days without the habit, rather than using punishment or scolding.
Behavioral strategies for thumb-sucking often involve identifying the triggers, such as stress or boredom, and replacing the habit with an alternative coping mechanism, like a comfort object or stress ball. For nighttime cessation, a physical barrier, such as a glove, sock, or a special bitter-tasting nail polish, can serve as a gentle reminder to discourage the behavior.
Techniques to encourage nasal breathing focus on retraining the respiratory muscles and increasing conscious awareness. Nasal breathing retraining involves consciously keeping the mouth closed and inhaling and exhaling gently through the nose throughout the day. Positional training, such as elevating the head during sleep, and nasal hygiene, including saline rinses, can help clear obstructions. For those with difficulty, exercises like alternating nostril breathing can help strengthen the nasal passages.
When Natural Methods Are Insufficient
While natural exercises are effective for open bites caused by poor muscular habits, they are insufficient for skeletal open bites. Myofunctional therapy succeeds when correcting a dental issue, where the teeth are misaligned but the underlying jaw bones are proportional. A skeletal open bite, conversely, involves a misalignment of the jaw bones themselves, often due to genetic factors or abnormal growth.
If an open bite involves significant vertical or horizontal facial asymmetry, or if there is no noticeable improvement after several months of consistent myofunctional exercises, a professional orthodontic evaluation is necessary. Signs warranting a consultation include a severe posterior open bite (where the back teeth do not meet), persistent difficulty closing the lips, or an inability to achieve a correct tongue rest posture due to structural constraints. In these severe cases, professional intervention, potentially involving appliances or surgery, may be required to achieve a stable and functional bite correction.