Hallie BulkinAsk HallieAI:Your On-Demand Mentor in Pediatric Feeding & Myo

Why Straightening Teeth Isn't Enough Anymore 🦷💨

19 Jul 2026 · 1 min

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In this monologue, a dental professional explains that modern orthodontic practice should prioritize the upper airway over merely aligning teeth. She describes how visual cues in children—such as a long facial profile, dark under‑eye circles, and buck teeth—signal airway obstruction. The speaker advocates for early palatal expansion to widen the nasal cavity, improve airflow, and flatten the palate, arguing that this approach has become her primary focus for years. She also notes that an orthodontist known for aggressive expansion exemplified this shift, underscoring the growing importance of treating the airway rather than just straightening teeth.

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You know, in my world, in dentistry, the upper airway is it. I mean, that's where our primary focus is. When you see a kid with a long face or the dark circles under their eyes or the buck teeth, right away it's like, focus on the upper airway, get that palatal expander in there, widen it up, you know, flatten out the roof of the mouth and the floor of the nasal cavity so that the air can flow through better and hunky-dory. You know, that should be it. And that's how I practice dentistry for, for years. In fact, there was one orthodontist in my area that I always knew when children saw him because I could tell by the smile that they saw this orthodontist because they weren't shy to expand, you know, and that's a good thing. And actually, that was sort of my introduction to what I'm doing now, believe it or not, is the importance of not just straightening out the teeth but the airway.