How Tongue Position Can Affect Your Health
The way your tongue rests and functions can influence important everyday activities, including chewing, swallowing, speaking, and maintaining good oral health.
Ideally, the tongue should rest gently against the roof of the mouth, with the tip positioned just behind the upper front teeth. Issues with the facial muscles, jaw structure, or airway can interfere with this natural position and affect how the tongue, lips, and jaw work together. These concerns may be associated with an orofacial myofunctional disorder (OMD).
Oral myofacial therapy can help improve the coordination and function of the muscles involved in breathing, swallowing, and oral posture. Your dental team can recommend targeted exercises and techniques designed to encourage healthier positioning of the tongue, lips, and jaw.
What to Expect From Oral Myofacial Therapy
At your initial consultation at our Leduc dental office, our dental professional will evaluate how your tongue, lips, jaw, and facial muscles are functioning. Based on their findings, they can develop a personalized treatment plan to address your specific needs.
Oral myofacial therapy uses targeted exercises and techniques to improve muscle coordination and encourage healthier oral posture. Treatment may focus on developing proper resting positions for the tongue and lips, supporting nasal breathing, and improving the way the muscles work together during everyday activities.
As treatment progresses, you can become more aware of your breathing, swallowing, and oral posture. This awareness can help you recognize and gradually replace habits that may be affecting muscle function.
Your dental team may also provide exercises to practice at home. Regular practice can help reinforce proper breathing, swallowing, and resting patterns while improving the strength, control, and coordination of the orofacial muscles.
Airway Screening
Healthy airway function depends in part on proper breathing patterns and coordinated movement of the muscles in the mouth and face. Oral myofacial therapy can address muscle patterns and oral habits that may contribute to difficulties with breathing, swallowing, or posture.
Airway screening is included as part of our preventive hygiene services. If screening identifies concerns with your breathing or airway function, our team can recommend an individualized approach that focuses on improving the function and coordination of the tongue, lips, jaw, and surrounding muscles.
Signs of Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders
- Oral Posture Issues: Low or forward tongue posture, open-mouth posture, or difficulty keeping the lips comfortably closed at rest
- Breathing & Airway Concerns: Persistent mouth breathing, noisy breathing, snoring, or other signs of disrupted breathing during sleep
- Swallowing & Chewing Issues: Tongue thrust during swallowing, difficulty chewing, or difficulty managing certain foods
- Dental & Jaw Development: Certain bite problems, such as an open bite or crossbite, narrow or high-arched palate, and dental crowding
- Muscle & Jaw Symptoms: Facial muscle tension, jaw discomfort, or difficulty coordinating the muscles involved in chewing and swallowing
- Speech Concerns: Difficulty producing certain speech sounds, including sounds that may be affected by tongue placement
- Oral Habits: Persistent thumb-sucking, pacifier use, lip-chewing, or other oral habits that may affect oral posture and muscle function
- Teeth Grinding & Clenching: Frequent grinding or clenching of the teeth, particularly during sleep
If you notice any of these signs, contact our clinic to schedule an assessment and discuss whether oral myofacial therapy may be appropriate for you or your child.