The front view of your teeth is what you will see in the mirror while scrubbing your pearly whites in the morning. In an ideal bite, the edges of your top teeth should follow the curve of your bottom lip. When your teeth are clenched together, about 90% of your bottom teeth should be visible.
The standard resting position has the teeth not touching each other; when the mouth is closed the teeth are slightly apart.
Proper oral posture means that at rest the tongue is to the roof of the mouth, the teeth are touching or slightly apart, and the lips are together without strain.
With the teeth together, you would expect the upper teeth to sit on the inside of the lower lip. If they sit over the lower lip, this might be a sign of protruded teeth. A person with protruded teeth is more at risk of tooth damage or loss from accidents and may have speech or eating problems.
Your bite viewed from the front
Ideally, the edges of the upper front teeth should parallel the top of the lower lip. If the upper teeth are too long, the patient will show too much gum tissue when they smile.
The pointed ends of the top teeth should fit perfectly between two teeth in the bottom. The backs of the upper front teeth should rest in gentle contact with the fronts of the lower ones. Essentially, your bite should “close”. If your front upper teeth stick out past your lower teeth, this is called an overbite.
When your mouth is at rest, your tongue should be against the roof of your mouth, but it should not be pressing against any of your teeth. Your teeth should be slightly apart, and your lips should be closed.
Typically, there are two types of overbites — horizontal and vertical. A horizontal overbite is when the top teeth extend past the bottom teeth, whereas a vertical overbite is when the top teeth overlap the bottom teeth. In a horizontal overbite, the bottom jaw may protrude toward the neck creating the overbite.
This is the sub-labial or mento-labial fold. In other words, the fold immediately beneath the lower lip. This fold is known as 'deep' when the top and bottom lips don't meet, i.e. when the top lip juts out, leaving a space between the top and bottom lips.
The main cause of dry mouth is little to no saliva in the mouth. This makes your mouth sticky, so even when you speak, your lips may stick to your teeth because of the lack of lubrication. In some cases, you may have some saliva, but it is thick.
In order for your teeth to touch, the main large chewing muscles on the sides of your face called the masseters and temporalis, have to contract. When they are at rest there is a tiny bit of space (called freeway space) between your teeth and this should be there at all times.
The extent of incisal tooth display at rest is an important esthetic factor in evaluating the outcome of fixed and removable prosthodontic procedures [1]. Accepted prosthodontics guidelines recommend displaying 2–4 mm in the arrangement of upper incisor teeth below the relaxed lip [2].
Ways to tell if your bite may be off:
One side of your teeth feels higher than the other. You touch down on one tooth before the others. It is tender to chew on that tooth/side of the mouth. Something just feels different than it did before.
Common Signs Of Crowded Teeth
Jaw pain. Overlapping teeth. Difficulty chewing. Difficulty flossing between your teeth.
The natural position for healthy breathing is always with a closed mouth, inhaling and exhaling through the nose.
The width of the lips should be about 40% of the width of the lower face and generally equal to the distance between the medial limbi. The width-to-height ratio of the face is typically 3:4, with an oval-shaped face being the aesthetic ideal.
Science has found that the most attractive lip shape has an upper-to-lower lip ratio of 1:2. Lips are most desirable in different shapes and forms for different people – 60% of people prefer a 1:1 ratio where the lips are completely symmetrical and evenly full.
According to lead researcher Professor Nuray Bayar Muluk, the ideal lip projections reflects the “golden ratio” or “divine proportion”—1:1.618. This translates to the top lip being smaller than the bottom lip in height or slightly less than a 40:60 ratio.
The severity of an overbite is determined by percentage. For instance, 100% overbite means your top teeth completely cover your bottom teeth. Most people have some degree of overbites, yet many do not need professional treatment.
There should be a little overlap of the top and bottom teeth at the front of your bite—usually around 4mm. But you should still be able to see 90% or around of your bottom teeth. Any less and you may have what is known as a 'deep' bite. The top teeth should also be a little bit in front of the bottom teeth.
Does Fixing An Overbite Change Face Shape? Yes, fixing an overbite can change the shape of your face. Overbites make your face look asymmetric. Furthermore, they can cause discomfort, and they may also affect speech and make wearing dentures difficult.
Proper oral resting posture is achieved when the following is present: mouth is closed with teeth touching (or just slightly apart) lips are closed. tongue is resting on the roof of your mouth (the hard palate)
Anxiety state: The anxiety state can be acute (reaction) or chronic (neurosis). Rubbing and thrusting of the tongue against the teeth occurs as a manifestation of anxiety in the tense, apprehensive, pent-up individual; it occurs par ticularly when the person is subject to emo tional stress.
After a meal or an acidic drink, chew sugarless gum, and if possible it is best if it contains xylitol. The action of chewing gum encourages the mouth to make saliva, which over time will restore pH balance.