Many researchers have developed analytical methods to evaluate gear meshing stiffness. Some of these methods ignored the effect of the gear body while others used a simplified model to consider its effect. Until now, a detailed investigation of gear body-induced tooth deflections has been rare, especially for the double-tooth-pair meshing period. In this study, we present a detailed investigation of gear body-induced tooth deflections. To be specific, we will discuss how to accurately evaluate gear body-induced tooth deflections using the finite element analysis, and what are the effect of parameters such as loading and gear parameters on gear body-induced tooth deflections. Then, an improved solution is developed for evaluating the body-induced tooth deflection. In the single-tooth-pair meshing period, the improved formula is developed based on a popular formula proposed by Sainsot and Velex. This is achieved by optimizing the coefficients used in their formula to make the formula more accurate to evaluate gear body-induced tooth deflections. Meanwhile, we introduce a new term called affiliated body stiffness to evaluate the body-induced tooth deflections in the double-tooth-pair meshing period. The improved method can give higher accuracy in evaluating gear body-induced tooth deflections of spur gears with a pressure angle of 20°.