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What is a Tongue Thrust?
Tongue thrusts refer to the forward motion of the tongue when speaking, chewing and/or swallowing. During a tongue thrust it may be possible to visibly see the tongue pushing forward against a person’s teeth or past their lips. There are a few different names that refer to this forward movement of a tongue thrust such as an immature swallowing pattern or a reverse swallow. All individuals thrust their tongue as infants, over time this swallow pattern usually dissipates. Individuals who maintain this behavior typically do so due to underlying causes or continuance of noxious behaviors. Noxious behaviors such as prolonged bottle use, prolonged thumb sucking, prolonged use of a pacifier encourage forward movement of the tongue. Individuals with a tongue thrust can attend myofunctional therapy to retrain their tongue to rest at the incisive papilla, this would correct the resting posture of the tongue and help extinguish poor oral habits. Treatment for individuals who tongue thrust involves identifying noxious behaviors, increasing awareness of oral movement patterns and adjusting to a new way of swallowing.
Reference
Shah, S. S., Nankar, M. Y., Bendgude, V. D., & Shetty, B. R. (2021). Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy in Tongue Thrust Habit: A Narrative Review. International journal of clinical pediatric dentistry, 14(2), 298–303.
https://doi.org/10.5005/jp-journals-10005-1926
