The Arch Project

Patient-led effort to get the jaw epidemic and craniofacial dystrophy recognised in mainstream medicine and culture.

The issue

Why do so many of us have crowded teeth, snoring, sleep apnea, and jaw joint disorders?

The prevalence of these problems has skyrocketed in a handful of generations, and the impact on our health can be profound.

Mainstream medicine has not offered a satisfactory explanation, treatments, or preventive measures for this problem, and existing treatment approaches in orthodontics can even make it worse.

A growing number of doctors and patients are realising that there might be a better way, and we, the patients, are organising to call for change.

Find out more about this issue.

Why it matters

Doctors and patients are increasingly aware that the shape of the jaws and face can have a significant impact on overall health, even when they appear normal.

Symptoms of poor jaw development and its knock-on effects can include:

  • Jaw joint pain

  • Crowded teeth

  • Snoring, upper airway resistance syndrome, and sleep apnea

  • Postural tension, headaches, tinnitus, and balance issues

The development of the jaws is guided by oral posture and function, which includes breast feeding, chewing, breathing, and where the tongue, lips, and teeth sit at rest.

This means that craniofacial dystrophy can be avoided through behaviour changes, but this requires widespread awareness, particularly among parents of young children.

Why it’s been neglected

There are a few main reasons why this issue hasn’t been properly addressed by mainstream healthcare:

  • Gap between dentistry and medicine.

    In the UK health system, any issue related to the structure of the jaws and face is considered a dental issue. Unfortunately, the dental profession has historically viewed the teeth as dead tissue, similar to the hair and nails, and orthodontics has been seen as a largely cosmetic consideration.

    We now know that the health and function of the mouth and face, including the teeth, are vital for overall health, but lack of awareness and dismissive attitudes still prevail within the dental profession. This means that jaw-related issues are not getting the proper medical attention they deserve.

    This is a systemic problem that makes it hard for both doctors and patients to recognise and address these issues, and one of the long-term goals of The Arch Project is to advocate for better integration between dentistry and the rest of medicine.

  • Challenge to orthodontic profession.

    The ideas behind the jaw epidemic, and craniofacial dystrophy, directly challenge the currently accepted treatment standards in orthodontics. This includes the routine extraction and retraction (moving backwards) of teeth, which can cause or worsen problems by making the space within the mouth smaller.

    Most orthodontists practicing today have trained on this approach and depend upon it to pay the bills, and moving to a new paradigm would involve significant retraining. It would also involve acknowledging the harms of extraction and retraction, and possibly accepting that some past or current treatment plans have been inappropriate.

  • Cultural taboos & sensitivities.

    The way our jaws and the rest of our faces and skulls develop is directly connected to how we look. Healthy jaws are more visually attractive. There is no way of avoiding this, and it can make the jaw epidemic a sensitive topic.

    We’re trying to break through some of the cultural awkwardness around this issue by talking openly about healthy facial development, even when it inevitably touches on physical appearance.

What we’re doing

We’re doing everything we can to raise awareness of this issue, and to petition doctors and politicians to act on it.

Our current & planned activities include:

  • Writing emails to our local healthcare providers (doctors, dentists, and orthodontists), academic leaders, and representatives.

  • In the UK, submitting the jaw epidemic as a topic for inquiry to the parliamentary Health Select Committee.

How you can help

This is a complex issue and getting recognition and action on it is a long-term project. The main levers we can pull as ordinary citizens are:

  • Talking about it.

  • Patient advocacy. If you or your child is a past, current, or prospective orthodontic patient: be a firm advocate for yourself. Insist on understanding the root cause of your problem, how any proposed treatments address that cause, and any risks involved – particularly around reducing the size of the mouth, which can impact the airway.

  • Taking our money elsewhere. Dentistry and orthodontics are the main providers of healthcare related to craniofacial development, and most practitioners are implementing a standard of care that is not supported by the evidence.

    Removing the market for these outdated treatment modalities will force practitioners to update their approaches or go out of business, and this will have significant ripple effects in the wider healthcare system.

  • Petitioning healthcare providers, industry thought leaders, regulatory bodies, and politicians.

We will not stand by while another generation grows up with serious health problems from a preventable condition.

Thank you for reading.