Be Thankful for Orthodontic Treatment
Studies show that not enough Americans are taking good care of their teeth, especially through dental and orthodontic treatment. The advanced technology available today is what allows patients to keep their natural teeth healthy for life and is something that millions in the world don’t have access to. Find out why oral health services such as orthodontic treatment is so important to patients and something to be thankful for this time of year!
Your Oral Health
When you think of the most chronic conditions and diseases that plague people today, you may not think of cavities as being one of the them. The National Institutes of Health reports that tooth decay—or cavities—are the most “chronic, prevalent disease” among American children and adults. In fact, about 92% of people have tooth decay by the time they reach adulthood. In all age groups, roughly between 20% and 25% of people have untreated decay they are not aware of.
What does tooth decay have to do with orthodontic treatment? This decay can happen to anyone at anytime and you are more likely to have tooth decay during your orthodontic treatment. Many patients opt for lingual, ceramic or traditional metal braces to straighten their teeth. These methods require brackets that are bonded to the teeth with wires that pass through those brackets. Even though these appliances are highly effective for providing beautiful straightening power, they can make it harder to clean your teeth. Because it’s harder to clean them, and some patients don’t take the extra time to do this, you can end up with tooth decay. That adds to that 92% statistic.
The best way to eliminate your risk for that tooth decay (as well as other oral health diseases), is to properly care for your teeth both with and without braces. That involves brushing your teeth at least twice a day for 2 minutes at a time, as recommended by the American Dental Association. When you have braces, you have to do this after every meal to avoid acidic plaque buildup, which happens when your food and drink sugars mix with mouth bacteria. With braces, threadable floss to go around brackets and wires is generally needed, as well as cleaning items such as a waterpik (water shooter) tool and a proxabrush for brackets. Your oral health can be stellar during orthodontic treatment with the right oral hygiene.
How Does the U.S. Compare?
Orthodontic treatment is a time when those in the U.S. can have a greater risk for developing cavities. This comes from a lack of oral hygiene during your orthodontic treatment period. However, the world at large is battling oral health diseases and poor dental and orthodontic care on an epidemic scale. The World Health Organization reports that cavities (tooth decay) and gum disease (periodontal disease) “have historically been considered the most important global oral health burdens”.
60%-90% of people worldwide have tooth decay and oral diseases connected to this condition. Children are affected the most, but statistics are almost as high in adults worldwide. Even though the U.S. is at a high percentage when it comes to tooth decay (92%), the presence of tooth decay is generally eliminated in most of the population through proper dental work and access to dental services. In the majority of other countries—especially underdeveloped ones—dental or orthodontic work is not a possibility for most. Oral health diseases are simply left untreated or the teeth are pulled when they become too painful.
The Connection to Orthodontic Treatment
Getting a cavity or having an oral health problem during your life can definitely be avoided, but most people will have some sort of oral problem, even if it is small. There are ways to prevent those problems such as proper brushing and flossing every single day. A great way to reduce your risk for oral health diseases is through orthodontic treatment. For children, this is known as child orthodontics. The American Association of Orthodontics recommends that children have their first orthodontic appointment between age 7 or 8.
This is a time when baby teeth are starting to fall out and adult, permanent teeth are starting to come into the mouth. Proper examination by an orthodontist can sport bite and alignment issues that are developing in children. When these issues occur, the teeth can come in crooked all over or they may not rest in the position they are supposed to. This can lead to speech impediments, many dental emergencies and broken teeth in the future from uneven dental pressure, higher instances of tooth decay and gum disease, and problems with oral health diseases.
Orthodontic treatment when young can help align the teeth and jaws to prevent oral problems as a child grows. When teens and adults receive orthodontic treatment via braces, they can better straighten permanent teeth when they come in. This sets everything straight and functional before the jaws harden in adulthood. Straight teeth and aligned jaws make it so cleaning the teeth becomes almost effortless. The risk for tooth decay and gum disease is also significantly lower.
Be Thankful for Your Orthodontic Treatment
Dentistry and orthodontic treatment helps diminish the presence of oral diseases.Yes, tooth decay and gum disease happen frequently due to poor oral hygiene habits. However, orthodontic treatment can help prevent those problems in the first place. Great oral care can prevent developing problems throughout your life. Even when these issues do happen, you won’t have to simply get your teeth pulled or let them decay and fall out of your mouth.
You have great orthodontic and dental options in the United States that allow you to keep your teeth, while many people across the globe have to lose them. Remember that the next time you think about skipping your oral care appointments. To reduce your risk for oral health diseases, you can call Belmar Orthodontics at (303) 225-9016 and ask about your orthodontic treatment plan.
Braces Can Change Your Life
Your oral health can determine much of your overall health. Food and substances enter through your mouth, affecting your waistline, your appearance and your health. Your oral health can improve your overall health when you make changes in oral hygiene and bite and alignment. Misalignments in bites and crooked teeth can cause health and social problems, as they can lead to speech impediments, oral health diseases, and worsening chronic conditions. With braces, you can not only change how healthy your mouth is, but can change your life too!
Growing In Straight Teeth
Many people picture teens when they think of braces. However, 1/4th of people with braces are kids. Child orthodontics help straighten out teeth that would cause them speech problems, broken teeth and trouble growing in the permanent teeth. Adults and teens usually get them for crooked teeth.
However, braces aren’t just for people with crooked teeth. You may see patients young and old that appear to have a straight smile and yet they have to get braces. In this case, there is probably an oral health issue with the bite or alignment. Your teeth should line up along both the upper jaw and the lower jaw. When you go to the dentist, they will ask you to bite together so that they can view how your bite rests. How your teeth sit when they are resting together can determine if you will have dental issues and even speech impediments. This is especially true for young kids who are losing baby teeth and having adult teeth grow in.
Children have their baby teeth for years—even up to age 12 or later at times. Those baby teeth start to space out a bit more as a child grows from an infant to a school-aged child. Their mouth grows with them, making room for adult teeth. 20 baby teeth will become 32 adult teeth (including the wisdom teeth). However, those teeth don’t always come into the mouth in the right position or the right direction. With a healthy bite, the upper and lower jaws should have the teeth lining up evenly with one another. The teeth should be straight up and down, and the front upper teeth will rest just slightly in front of the bottom front teeth.
Braces Can Prevent Dental Injuries
When teeth aren’t straight and they jut out at different angles, it can mean broken, cracked or chipped teeth in the future. Those dental injuries would be caused by uneven pressure on certain teeth which will eventually break them or will cause areas of decay that you can’t clean well. The alignment of the teeth can also cause speech impediments when forming words, and those impediments can last for life if bite, alignment and crooked teeth aren’t corrected. For young children and adults alike, receiving braces for these issues can certainly change not only their oral health, but their life.
Braces are sometimes needed to make space in a patient’s mouth. Not all mouths grow to fit the incoming teeth, but that doesn’t mean the adult teeth won’t stop coming in. All your teeth will come in, even if they have to crowd out other teeth. That crowding can be painful and even one tooth coming in where there isn’t room can cause all of your teeth to go crooked. As a tooth comes in, it will slowly push other teeth from the area, which then have to shift. This is what wisdom teeth commonly do, and it can be painful as it messes up a smile. Braces can stop that from happening by making plenty of space in the mouth for teeth that are still coming in.
What If You Have Your Teeth Already?
The dental issues we have mentioned will generally happen before a person has reached adulthood. The American Association of Orthodontics recommends that children have their first orthodontic appointment around age 7 or 8. This is when we can see how the baby teeth are falling out and how the permanent teeth are coming in. We stop dental issues before they start forming, and during this time when the jaw bones are still soft enough to mold. However, at least 1/4th of patients that have braces get them when they are adults. The jaws have grow completely and have hardened into place by adulthood, making orthodontic treatment harder.
However, we said “harder”, not “impossible”. Orthodontic advancements can definitely help an adult change their smile to change their life. Now, more than ever, it is becoming increasingly important to have a straight smile as an adult. Studies show that others make an opinion of you based off of the first few seconds of meeting you. Your appearance can go a long way. Your smile is also one of the top 3 features others will notice first when formulating an opinion about you. Studies show that those with straighter teeth are seen as more attractive, successful, smart, healthy and trustworthy. Employers are more likely to hire those with straight smiles over those who don’t have them.
Your Options
If you’re an adult, you can straighten your smile without it being noticeable. Children often go the route of traditional metal braces or ceramic braces, which are the same but made from ceramic material. Adults and many teens opt for hidden options like lingual braces or Invisalign treatment. Lingual braces are metal braces that attach behind the teeth, staying hidden as they correct bite, alignment and your teeth. Invisalign treatment consists of transparent aligners patients change out every week. However, they don’t do as well with larger bite and alignment issues. It’s never too late to receive orthodontic treatment.
Whether you are young or old, you can change your smile to reduce or eliminate your problems with speech, tooth decay, oral health issues, dental injuries and to even feel more attractive. Want to see just how much braces can change your life? Call Belmar Orthodontics today at (303) 225-9016 to receive your free consultation!
