Ever wondered what causes overbites — and how to tell if you or your child might have one? You’re not alone. Overbites are one of the most common dental issues, and many people don’t realize there’s a problem until discomfort or cosmetic concerns show up.
Overbites happen when the upper teeth overlap the lower teeth too much. This can come from genetics, jaw growth, childhood habits like thumb sucking, or even missing teeth later in life.
More than just a cosmetic concern, overbites can affect chewing, speech, and even jaw comfort. The good news? Catching the signs early gives you more options — and better results.
In this guide, we’ll explore the main causes of overbites, how to spot the signs, and when it’s time to seek help.
If you’re in Edmond, you’ll find thoughtful answers and expert care at The Tooth Experience — where your comfort comes first.
What Is an Overbite?
An overbite happens when your upper front teeth overlap your lower front teeth more than they should. This can vary from a slight overlap to a much deeper one, which sometimes affects how your teeth and jaws work.
Knowing what an overbite is, the types, and its symptoms helps you understand if you may need treatment.
Definition and Overview
An overbite means your upper teeth cover too much of your lower teeth when your mouth is closed. Everyone has a small overbite, but it’s considered a problem if it’s too deep or causes issues.
A normal overbite covers about ⅓ to ½ of your lower teeth. Beyond that, it’s often called an excessive overbite or deep bite.
This condition can affect your chewing and speech, and sometimes cause discomfort. If you notice your upper teeth extend far over the bottom ones or your jaw feels off, you might have an overbite.
Types of Overbites
There are two main types of overbites:
- Dental overbite: Caused by the position of your teeth. Habits like thumb-sucking, prolonged pacifier use when younger, or crowded teeth can lead to this.
- Skeletal overbite: Linked to the size or shape of your jawbones. This one is often genetic or develops as you grow.
Knowing which type you have matters because the treatment can differ. For example, skeletal overbites might need more complex orthodontics or even surgery, while dental overbites often respond well to braces or aligners.
Symptoms of Overbites
You might notice several signs if you have an overbite that needs attention. These include:
- Upper front teeth sticking out noticeably, sometimes called “buck teeth.”
- Difficulty biting into some foods or uneven chewing.
- Jaw pain or discomfort because the bite doesn’t line up right.
- Wear on your lower teeth or gums from constant contact with upper teeth.
Besides looking at your teeth, your dentist can spot subtle signs during an exam. If left untreated, an overbite can lead to headaches or even tooth damage over time.
If you’re unsure about your bite or feel any discomfort, talk to your dentist. They can offer a clear checkup and suggest treatment options that fit your needs.
Genetic Causes of Overbites
Your chances of having an overbite can be strongly linked to how your jaw and teeth develop. These traits often come from family genes passed down through generations.
Understanding this can help you know why you might have an overbite and what to expect.
Inherited Jaw Structure
One key factor in overbites is the shape and size of your jaw, which you inherit from your parents. If your lower jaw (mandible) is smaller or set back compared to your upper jaw, this can cause your upper teeth to overlap the lower ones.
This type of jaw structure affects how your teeth line up when you bite down. Different jaw sizes and shapes create a natural misalignment that leads to an overbite.
Since these traits run in families, you may notice that parents or siblings have a similar bite. Your dentist can check your jaw development to understand if genetics play a role in your overbite and suggest the best treatment.
Family History of Malocclusion
If crooked teeth or bite problems run in your family, you have a higher chance of developing an overbite. Malocclusion, or bad bite, tends to be passed down because of shared genetic factors like tooth size or jaw growth patterns.
Knowing your family history helps you and your dentist spot early signs of overbite. This can be especially important if you have children.
Early care from professionals can prevent the bite from worsening by addressing habits or jaw growth as your child develops.
Early Childhood Habits That Lead to Overbites
Certain childhood habits can shape how teeth and jaws grow over time. These behaviors create pressure on your child’s teeth, causing them to move in ways that can lead to an overbite.
Recognizing and addressing these habits early can protect your child’s smile.
Thumb Sucking
Thumb sucking is common in young children, but when it goes on past age three, it can cause problems. Sucking the thumb pushes the upper front teeth forward while the lower front teeth may tilt inward.
This shift can lead to an overbite, making the top teeth overlap the bottom ones more than normal. Thumb sucking during sleep puts constant pressure on the upper jaw.
If your child continues this habit long-term, it can affect jaw growth and alignment. To avoid this, you can encourage your child to stop thumb sucking after age three with positive reinforcement or distraction techniques.
Prolonged Use of Pacifiers
Using a pacifier beyond the toddler years can also cause an overbite. The sucking motion affects how the teeth line up and how the jaws develop.
Like thumb sucking, it pushes the upper teeth forward and can lead to misalignment if the pacifier is used too long. Experts recommend stopping pacifier use by age three.
If your child still relies on a pacifier after this time, it may be good to talk with your family dentist about strategies to help them quit. Addressing this early lowers the chance of needing braces later.
Tongue Thrusting
Tongue thrusting happens when your child pushes their tongue against the front teeth during swallowing or at rest. This repeated pressure can force the teeth forward and increase the overlap between top and bottom teeth.
Tongue thrusting is harder to spot but can affect speech and bite if it continues as your child grows. Your dentist or orthodontist can evaluate this and suggest exercises or appliances to retrain the tongue’s position.
Catching this habit early helps guide proper jaw and tooth alignment.
Developmental and Growth-Related Factors
Some overbites happen because of the way your jaw and teeth grow. These factors affect how your upper and lower jaws line up.
Understanding this can help you catch problems early and find the right care.
Abnormal Jaw Development
Your jaw’s size and shape play a big role in overbites. Sometimes, the upper jaw grows larger or forward more than the lower jaw.
This difference makes your upper teeth stick out over the lower ones. Small lower jaws are common in people with overbites.
The lower jaw may not grow enough or grow in the wrong direction. This can cause your teeth to fit together unevenly.
Injuries or health conditions during childhood can also affect jaw growth. These changes may make it harder to bite or chew properly, and they can affect your smile.
If you notice your child’s teeth aren’t lining up right, early visits to your family dental care provider can help spot jaw growth issues.
Delayed Loss of Baby Teeth
Your baby teeth should fall out at the right time to make space for adult teeth. If baby teeth stay too long, adult teeth may erupt crooked or in the wrong spot.
When baby teeth don’t come out on schedule, adult teeth push against them. This pressure can push teeth forward and create or worsen an overbite.
This delay can also cause crowding, where teeth don’t have enough room to grow in properly. It may lead you to need braces or other alignment treatments later.
Your dentist can monitor your child’s tooth loss during regular checkups.
Dental Health Issues Contributing to Overbites
Several dental problems can cause or make an overbite worse. Issues like missing teeth, crowded spaces, or teeth that don’t grow in right affect how your upper and lower teeth line up.
These problems change the position of your teeth and jaw, leading to an overbite.
Tooth Loss or Missing Teeth
When you lose a tooth or have missing teeth, the surrounding teeth start to shift. This movement can cause your bite to fall out of alignment.
Without nearby teeth holding place, other teeth may tilt or drift forward or backward. Over time, this shift can cause the upper teeth to overlap the lower teeth more than normal, creating or worsening an overbite.
Missing teeth often lead to uneven chewing, which puts extra pressure on certain teeth. This pressure can change how your jaws fit together.
If you notice gaps or feel discomfort when biting, it’s a good idea to see your dentist. Fixing missing teeth early helps keep your bite balanced.
Overcrowded Teeth
Overcrowded teeth happen when there’s not enough space in your mouth. Teeth push against each other and can grow crooked or overlap.
This crowding can stop your jaws and teeth from aligning properly, which may cause an overbite. Crowded teeth are common in both kids and adults.
They can make it hard to brush or floss well, raising the risk of cavities and gum problems. Straightening crowded teeth with treatments like braces or Invisalign can improve both your smile and bite.
Irregular Tooth Eruption
Tooth eruption means how and when your teeth grow out from your gums. Sometimes teeth don’t come in the right way or at the right time.
This irregular eruption can affect your bite. If adult teeth come in too early, too late, or at odd angles, they can push or pull other teeth.
For example, if a tooth grows too far forward, it may push upper teeth over lower ones, causing an overbite. This is common with wisdom teeth or if baby teeth hold on too long.
Your dentist can spot eruption problems early. Treatments may include removing stubborn baby teeth or guiding new teeth with braces to keep your bite healthy. Regular checkups make a big difference.
Impact of Trauma and Injury on Overbite Formation
Trauma and injuries can change how your teeth and jaw grow. These changes might cause or worsen an overbite, affecting how your teeth fit together and how your smile looks.
Understanding the effects of injury on your mouth helps you know when to seek care.
Jaw Injuries
Injuries to your jaw, like breaks or hits during accidents, can shift the way your jawbone grows or sits. This misalignment often causes the upper jaw to move forward or the lower jaw to move backward, making your overbite worse.
If a jaw injury is left untreated, it may cause long-term problems with chewing, speaking, or even breathing. Using protective gear during contact sports can reduce your risk of jaw trauma.
Damage to Developing Teeth
When trauma happens during childhood, it can affect teeth that are still forming under the gums. This damage may change how teeth grow, leading to crooked teeth or shifts that create an overbite.
Injuries to primary (baby) teeth can also affect the position of adult teeth as they come in. If your child experiences a dental injury, prompt care is important to guide healthy growth.
Early treatment means better chances to avoid a severe overbite and keep your smile healthy over time.
Lifestyle and Environmental Influences
Certain habits and environmental factors can affect how your teeth grow and align. These influences can change how your upper and lower teeth bite together, sometimes causing an overbite.
Understanding what these habits are helps you take better care of your smile.
Poor Oral Habits
Some habits you might do as a kid can affect how your teeth and jaws develop. For example, thumb-sucking past the age of five can push your upper teeth forward.
Using a pacifier a lot or for longer than recommended can have the same effect. Nail-biting and chewing on objects like pencils or pen caps puts uneven pressure on your teeth.
These repeated forces can shift your teeth out of place and contribute to an overbite over time. Breaking these habits early is key.
If you notice a child sucking their thumb or using a pacifier often, it’s a good idea to encourage them to stop before it impacts their bite.
Mouth Breathing
Mouth breathing, especially during childhood, can change the way your jaws and teeth develop. When you breathe through your mouth instead of your nose, your tongue often rests lower in your mouth.
This can lead to less support for the upper jaw and cause it to develop improperly. Mouth breathing can be caused by allergies, a stuffy nose, or other health issues.
If it’s a long-term habit, it may push your teeth forward or create space problems between your jaws. Your dentist or doctor can suggest ways to improve nasal breathing and avoid problems linked to mouth breathing.
How Overbites Change Over Time
Your overbite can change as you get older. In many cases, overbites tend to get worse if left untreated.
This happens because of tooth wear, gum disease, and changes in your jaw muscles over time. Certain habits, like thumb-sucking as a child, can cause your overbite to develop or become more noticeable.
For adults, missing teeth or shifts in your bite can also make the problem worse. Here are some common reasons an overbite can change over time:
- Teeth pushing forward or backward
- Jaw bone growth differences
- Muscle imbalances in your mouth
- Tooth wear and damage
Regular check-ups are important. They catch changes early and keep your smile looking and feeling good.
If you notice discomfort or your bite feels different, don’t wait to seek help.
Why Understanding Overbite Causes Is Important
Knowing what causes an overbite helps you take control of your dental health. When you understand the reasons behind an overbite, such as genetics, childhood habits, or jaw alignment issues, you can better decide when to seek help.
Early care can make a big difference in preventing problems later. An untreated overbite can lead to pain, tooth wear, and even headaches.
It can also affect how you chew and speak. Understanding causes means you can act before these issues get worse.
Here are some common reasons for an overbite:
- Genetics – Family traits can play a big role.
- Habits – Thumb sucking or pacifier use during childhood.
- Jaw growth – Differences in how the upper and lower jaws develop.
Knowing these factors helps your dentist tailor a treatment plan just for you. By understanding the root causes, you can also take steps at home to avoid habits that make an overbite worse. Prevention is easier than correction.
Keeping an eye on your child’s bite as they grow helps you catch problems early, so you don’t have to worry later. Remember, you’re not alone.
Don’t Let an Overbite Hold Back Your Smile
Understanding what causes overbites — from genetics to childhood habits — is the first step toward protecting your long-term oral health.
Whether you’re noticing early signs in your child or dealing with bite discomfort yourself, the right support can make a big difference.
At The Tooth Experience, we guide you gently from diagnosis to personalized solutions, all with comfort, clarity, and care you can trust.
Getting started is simple, and your smile deserves it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Many questions come up when dealing with overbites, especially about treatment, causes, and how severe it might be. Understanding these details can help you decide when to seek care and what options fit your needs.
How can one correct an overbite naturally?
Overbites do not fix themselves without help. Natural correction isn’t effective because the teeth and jaw need guided movement to improve alignment.
You may notice minor changes through good oral habits, but professional treatment is usually needed to really correct an overbite.
What distinguishes an overbite from a normal bite alignment?
A normal bite means your upper and lower teeth meet with a slight overlap. An overbite happens when your upper front teeth cover much more of the lower front teeth than usual.
This larger overlap can affect how your jaw fits together and cause discomfort or wear over time.
At what point is an overbite considered severe?
An overbite becomes severe when the upper teeth cover most of the lower teeth, sometimes causing the lower teeth to touch the roof of the mouth. This can lead to jaw pain, chewing problems, and even speech issues.
A dentist or orthodontist can measure how deep your bite is to determine the severity.
What are the genetic factors contributing to overbite development?
Overbites often run in families. Traits like jaw size and tooth size can be inherited, which may cause your teeth and jaws to grow unevenly. If your parents had overbites, you might be more likely to develop one too.
What habits can lead to the worsening of an overbite?
Thumb sucking, tongue thrusting, and prolonged use of a pacifier as a child can push your teeth out of alignment and make an overbite worse. Teeth grinding or clenching can also affect the bite over time.
Can overbites be corrected without the use of braces?
Sometimes, clear aligners or other orthodontic devices can fix mild to moderate overbites. In severe cases, surgery or traditional braces may be needed.
