The American Association of Orthodontists recommends every child have a first orthodontic screening by age 7 — well before most permanent teeth arrive, and often before parents assume there’s anything worth checking. The timing isn’t arbitrary: several jaw and bite issues are far easier, faster, and less invasive to correct while the bones are still growing than after growth has finished.

What we’re actually screening for at age 7:

• Crossbites, where upper teeth sit inside the lower teeth — these don’t self-correct and can drive asymmetric jaw growth if left alone
• Early signs of a narrow palate, visible before crowding shows up in the permanent teeth
• Notable crowding or spacing patterns that predict alignment problems ahead
• Jaw growth discrepancies, such as an underbite or a significantly recessed lower jaw, which respond far better to growth-guidance appliances in a growing child than to any adult treatment option
• Habits still shaping the bite, like extended thumb-sucking or pacifier use
• Airway-related signs, including mouth breathing or a high-vaulted palate

An early screening doesn’t mean early treatment for every child — most kids we screen at 7 don’t need any intervention yet, and we simply monitor growth at regular intervals until, or unless, treatment timing is right. But for the subset with a crossbite, significant jaw discrepancy, or airway-related narrow palate, this window is the difference between a straightforward appliance-based fix in childhood and a far more involved — sometimes surgical — correction once growth has finished.

Our Falcon office offers no-cost early orthodontic screenings specifically so timing never becomes the reason a treatable problem gets missed. If your child is 7 or older and hasn’t had an evaluation yet, there’s no downside to scheduling one — either we confirm everything’s on track, or we catch something early enough to make it simple.