Everyone wants the perfect pearly white, straight teeth. Before using braces, people used various methods to straighten their teeth, such as the use of Catguts, a wire made from animal intestines that would go around your teeth to help straighten them.
Dental braces as we know them today were invented in 1819; there have been numerous improvements to them over time.
Everyone wants perfectly straight teeth, and we’re going to look at just what braces do and how they operate.
What do Dental Braces do?
Braces are a device placed in the mouth to help with misaligned teeth, crowding, crooked teeth, or gaps.
Braces work to align your teeth by applying pressure to your teeth slowly, and over time they begin to straighten.
They also help in different ways, such as allowing you to chew your food easier and keeping your teeth clean. Most people generally wear braces for around 2 years, but it varies by person. You’d have to go in to see a Gainesville Dentist.
Types of Braces
- Metal Braces: These are the most common types of braces, including metal brackets attached to your teeth and wires used to hold the brackets in place.
- Ceramic Braces: These are essentially the same as the standard metal braces, except they clear brackets that help blend with your teeth. These are less noticeable but also the more expensive option.
- Lingual Braces: These are also metal brackets that go in your mouth, however, these are placed on the inside of your teeth instead of the front, making it harder to see. The position of these braces leads to far more complications, such as cleaning and discomfort.
- Invisalign: This is a clear mouthguard type of braces that you place in your mouth. They are removable but only last about 2 weeks. Invisalign sadly has its downsides, such as not fixing more severe dental issues and being expensive.
Living with Braces
Living with braces will alter your daily life. You will want to avoid chewy foods, sugary food, sticky foods, and hard foods. These kinds of food can damage your braces which simply means it won’t be effective anymore.
You will also want to floss and brush your teeth after every meal. Braces might also cause some discomfort in your mouth and for that, you may have to take a pain reliever.
While braces might cause some inconvenience in your life, it’s the price you pay for straight teeth. If you ever have any concerns regarding your braces, your dentist is the perfect place to have your questions answered.
How Successful are Braces?
You might want to know just how successful braces are before you make the commitment, and that would be a fair question to ask.
In general, braces tend to be successful, but as is the case with most things in life, it doesn’t work correctly for everyone. Braces tend to work better for younger people but it varies from case to case.
Pros and Cons of Braces
Undoubtedly, braces are going to come with certain pros and cons and it’s up to you to decide whether the pros outway the cons or vice versa. If you’re having a hard time deciding, your dentist is the best person to ask.
Pros can include:
- Teeth will become aligned
- Allows you to more easily keep your teeth clean
- Easier to chew foods upon completion of the procedure
- Reduces the chance of dental problems
Cons can include:
- Non-removable (except Invisalign)
- Makes it harder to chew food
- Monthly visit to the orthodontist
- Hard to maintain
In summary, braces serve to straighten your teeth, generally by attaching brackets to your teeth and it is very effective.
It does alter the way you live, by affecting the different food you’re able to eat and the food you aren’t. They require more maintenance, such as flossing and brushing your teeth after every meal.
Braces generally take one to two hours to be put on, and you can expect a monthly visit to your orthodontist, but no worries, a qualified dentist knows exactly what they’re doing.
For More Dental Tips and Information about Dental Braces, Visit Ehealth Spider.
