August 12, 2026

Signs Your Child May Need Braces

Certain dental and jaw signs, such as crowded or overlapping teeth, prolonged thumb or dummy sucking, or a bite that does not line up, suggest a child’s teeth and jaw are worth having checked. Spotting one of these signs is a reason to book an assessment, not proof that treatment is needed.

Crowded, overlapping or gapped teeth as the adult teeth come through
Difficulty biting or chewing, or frequent cheek biting
Mouth breathing or snoring, especially during sleep
Thumb, finger or dummy sucking that continues past the toddler years
Baby teeth lost unusually early or late, or a jaw that shifts or clicks

Why These Signs Are Worth Checking

Noticing a possible sign does not mean your child needs braces. It simply means it is worth a specialist assessment, and many of the children we see early are simply monitored rather than treated straight away. The purpose of the visit is to determine whether development looks healthy, whether it should be reviewed over time, or whether a specific issue may benefit from earlier guidance.

This is more common than most parents realise. Up to 93 percent of children and adolescents show some degree of malocclusion, a bite that is not properly aligned, though not all of them require intervention. In other words, an imperfect bite is the norm, not the exception. At that first visit, we simply work out whether nothing needs to happen yet, whether monitoring is the right approach while your child continues to grow, or whether an early step would help.

The Right Age for an Assessment

Australian guidance recommends an orthodontic assessment between 7 and 10 years of age. Internationally, the American Association of Orthodontists recommends screening a little earlier, by age 7, because enough permanent teeth have usually erupted by then for developing problems to be visible on examination. At this stage, children usually have a mix of baby and adult teeth, which can make developing bite or spacing concerns easier to assess. You do not need to wait until every adult tooth has erupted.

An assessment does not require every adult tooth to be present, and it does not require a referral. Both Australian and international guidance are clear that if you notice something before the usual age, there is no need to wait, and we would always rather see your child early than have you wait unnecessarily.

A Quick Checklist of Common Signs

The table below outlines signs parents commonly notice. Each one is worth mentioning during an assessment, but none is a diagnosis on its own.

Sign	What You Might Notice	Why It’s Worth Mentioning
Crowding or overlapping	Teeth appear twisted, overlap or erupt behind one another	Space may be limited for the adult teeth
Gaps or spacing	Visible gaps between teeth	Can also point to a size or space mismatch
Biting or chewing difficulty	Discomfort chewing, or frequent cheek biting	Teeth may not be meeting evenly
Mouth breathing or snoring	Breathing through the mouth, especially asleep	Linked to jaw and airway development, seen across studies of 1,358 children
Prolonged sucking habits	Thumb, finger or dummy use beyond toddler years	Raises odds of an open bite roughly fivefold, dummy use more than sevenfold
Early or late tooth loss	Baby teeth lost well before or after peers	The timing may affect space or the eruption of adult teeth
Bite problems	Teeth that do not meet properly when closed	May indicate jaw or tooth alignment issues
Jaw shifting or clicking	Jaw clicks, pops or shifts when opening	Can signal an underlying bite problem

Crowding and Gaps in Children

Crowding occurs when there is not enough space for teeth to erupt into a comfortable position. Teeth may overlap, rotate or come through behind one another. It often becomes more noticeable when the permanent front teeth erupt, which is why parents may feel the change happened quickly. It is one of the most visible signs, and it is also one Capital Smiles Orthodontics lists directly among the things parents are encouraged to watch for.

Gaps can be a normal part of dental development, especially while baby teeth are being replaced. Larger or persistent spaces may also relate to tooth size, missing teeth or eruption patterns. An orthodontist can distinguish normal development from spacing that should be monitored.

Difficulty Biting, Chewing or Cheek Biting

Ongoing discomfort while biting or chewing is not something to treat as normal. Ongoing discomfort while biting or chewing should not be considered normal. The American Association of Orthodontists notes that experiencing a high level of discomfort while chewing or biting may indicate a problem worth assessing. If your child regularly bites their cheek without meaning to, this can also be a sign that the upper and lower teeth are not coming together the way they should, and it’s a simple thing to mention to us at a check-up rather than something to worry over alone.

Mouth Breathing or Snoring

Mouth breathing during the day or sleep is worth mentioning at an assessment, because the evidence links it to more than just a habit. Research comparing mouth breathers with nasal breathers has found measurable differences in jaw position, facial growth pattern and airway space, not just a passing quirk. Orthodontics Australia lists mouth breathing and snoring among its specific early-assessment signs for Australian families.

Mouth breathing has several possible causes, so an orthodontic assessment is often one part of a bigger picture:

Enlarged tonsils or adenoids
Allergies or nasal congestion

Depending on your child’s symptoms, a dentist, GP, paediatrician or ear, nose and throat specialist may also need to be involved. Tell the orthodontist what you have noticed, particularly if your child regularly sleeps with their mouth open or seems unusually tired during the day.

Thumb, Finger or Dummy Sucking

Sucking habits are completely normal in babies and toddlers, and most children stop on their own between the ages of two and four. Where it continues beyond that, the evidence is worth knowing. Thumb, finger and dummy sucking both raise the odds of an open bite (where the front teeth do not touch), with dummy use carrying the higher risk of the two and a greater chance of a narrow, crossed bite as well.

Guidance varies slightly depending on the purpose. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends speaking with a dental professional if the habit continues beyond age three, mainly to support the child in stopping it. Australian orthodontic guidance suggests an assessment if the habit continues beyond age five, when it may begin to affect the developing teeth and bite .

If your child is still sucking their thumb past four or five, it’s worth mentioning to us, as most habits like this respond well to a gentle, unhurried approach.

Early or Late Loss of Baby Teeth

Baby teeth act as natural placeholders for the adult teeth developing underneath them, so losing one much earlier or later than expected is worth a mention. The American Association of Orthodontists lists early or late tooth loss among its recommended signs, noting it “can create problems with the permanent teeth replacing them”, and Australian guidance flags loss before age five specifically. One study found that losing a first baby molar early on carried a real chance of the neighbouring teeth shifting out of place, which helps explain why this sign is taken seriously rather than treated as a cosmetic detail.

Most early tooth loss comes down to everyday causes such as a knock, a fall, or decay, and rarely points to anything more serious. Where a tooth is lost without an obvious cause, a thorough check by a dental professional is a sensible, low-key step rather than a reason for alarm.

Understanding Bite Problems

A bite problem describes how the upper and lower teeth meet, or do not meet. These terms come up often and are worth defining in plain language:

Overbite: the upper front teeth overlap the lower front teeth more than usual
Reverse overjet (Underbite): the lower front teeth sit in front of the upper front teeth
Crossbite: one or more upper teeth sit inside the lower teeth, at the front or the back of the mouth
Open bite: the upper and lower front teeth do not touch when the mouth is closed
Overjet: the upper front teeth protrude forward, sometimes called “buck teeth”

These definitions are consistent between clinical sources and Capital Smiles’ own explanation of common bite problems. None of these on its own means treatment is required, they are simply useful terms for describing what an orthodontist will be looking at during an assessment.

Jaw Clicking, Shifting or Facial Asymmetry

A jaw that clicks, pops or visibly shifts to one side when your child opens or closes their mouth is another sign worth raising. The American Association of Orthodontists notes that jaw shifting linked to a bite problem “can lead to jaw pain and other dental consequences” over time, and that noticeable facial imbalance is usually connected to an underlying bite issue rather than being unrelated.

If you notice this, mention it at your child’s assessment so we can take a closer look.

What an Orthodontic Assessment Actually Involves

Nobody can tell from a checklist alone whether your child needs braces, and that is exactly what an assessment is for. It’s a common question once parents have spotted one or two of these signs, and it’s worth knowing what that first visit with us is actually like, because it is often far less involved than parents expect.

Your child’s first appointment is an assessment, not a treatment visit. No appliances are fitted at this stage. In many cases, we simply monitor how the teeth and jaws develop and review your child again as they grow.

A typical visit with our team includes:

A visual examination
X-rays or scans, if needed
A clear conversation about whether anything needs monitoring, what the options are if treatment is appropriate later, and a general idea of cost

You can read more about what to bring and how to book on our first visit page.

You also don’t need a referral from a dentist to book directly with us. It is worth knowing that the Australian Dental Association advises against DIY and mail-order orthodontic treatment. An in-person assessment allows a specialist orthodontist to properly examine your child’s teeth, bite and jaw, then recommend care based on their individual needs.

A Quick Note on Cost

Routine orthodontic treatment is generally not covered by Medicare, and the Child Dental Benefits Schedule does not cover orthodontic dental work. Private health insurance may provide a rebate depending on the policy and level of extras cover, and waiting periods may apply.

We know cost is often one of the first questions parents ask. Because this blog is about recognising signs rather than planning a budget, we’ve shared how treatment costs vary on our dedicated cost of braces page and where families are welcomed to call us for the cost of initial consults and braces estimates @ 02 6111 2946 before booking.

Taking the Next Step

Book an assessment if the signs are persistent, affect eating or sleeping, or simply leave you concerned. You do not need to wait until age 7 if something changes earlier. Equally, spotting one sign does not mean your child will need braces.

An assessment gives you clear, individual information about your child, and there is no pressure to proceed with treatment as a result of it.

Capital Smiles Orthodontics assesses children in Deakin, ACT, and a dentist’s referral is not required. Dr Jasprit Singh is a specialist orthodontist with postgraduate qualifications including an MSc in Orthodontics from UCL Eastman and an MSc in Lingual Orthodontics from Hannover Medical School.

You can read more about early assessment on the children’s orthodontics page, or find out more about common bite problems if you would like to understand the terms in more depth before you book.