Speech & Language Treatment

If your child develops oral problems, such as misalignment, irregular jaw growth, and other things, it is possible that their speech could be affected. At Deer Creek Children's Dentistry, Drs. White and Lance are trained to identify signs of speech problems that your child could be developing as their teeth grow. If you wish to have any of these issues corrected, our pediatric dentists can refer your child to trusted specialists who can provide proper speech and language treatment in Heber City, Utah. For more information, we invite you to contact us today at 435-315-3080 and set up an appointment to have your child visit our pediatric dentists.

Teeth play several roles, and while most of us think of our teeth as being used for eating and smiling, they are also important in helping us speak. Our teeth are essential in helping us produce a number of sounds, including F, Th, S, V, Ch, and more. Your child may develop a number of speech problems if he or she has structural or cosmetic problems with his or her teeth or jaw. These problems may include mumbling, lisps, stuttering, or cluttering. Here are a few ways that your child’s teeth impact their speech and communication:

  • Missing or crooked teeth can make it difficult for your child to produce certain sounds, which can result in a lisp or articulation disorders (such as replacing the sound r with w).
  • A small mouth or jaw structure can limit the space available in the mouth for tongue movement, which makes it more likely that your child will develop slurred speech.
  • Cosmetic problems (such as missing, stained, or crowded teeth) may be embarrassing, which can lead your child to try to hide their teeth while they speak. This in turn often results in mumbling or unclear speech, and it can make the facial muscles more rigid, which makes it difficult to later correct the problem.

If your child has a speech problem, our pediatric dentists can examine your child’s smile and determine whether their teeth and mouth are affecting their speech and communication. Based on our findings, we can then provide or recommend necessary treatments. For more information, please do not hesitate to contact our office today.