Keeping mouths closed

In this episode, Greg Dickens and I discuss recent papers on crooked teeth in the Amazon rainforest and on how plastics affect children’s health in adulthood. We then explore open-mouth posture in children - what it is, why it’s a problem, and what we can do to help them keep their mouth closed. Finally, Greg gives his perspective on how he models assessing and mitigating risk for his children.For more information on helping children keep their mouths closed, try this article: https://guenbradbury.substack.com/p/how-to-help-children-keep-their-mouths For more information on why children start to hold their mouths open, try this article: https://guenbradbury.substack.com/p/breathtakingFor more information on why we don’t sleep with mattresses, try this article: https://guenbradbury.substack.com/p/sleeping-like-a-logTopics covered* What do the indigenous people of the Amazon have to teach us about the etiology of dental malocclusion?* How are plastics driving a health crisis?* Why shouldn’t children hold their mouths open?* What can we do to help them keep their mouths closed?* How can we better manage the risks of ‘risky play’?These other podcast episodes cover overlapping topicsNotesWhat do the indigenous people of the Amazon have to teach us about the etiology of dental malocclusion? https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1073874625000635Lancet article on plastics and child development: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/article/PIIS2352-4642(25)00212-3/abstractThanks for reading Growing up WEIRD! Subscribe for free for a weekly dose of information on raising children for better long-term health. Get full access to Growing up WEIRD at guenbradbury.substack.com/subscribe