Normally the wear of orthodontia is associated with those awkward teenage years. However, more and more adults are starting to use braces, whether to fix dental problems or to create a nice, straight smile.
What Orthodontics Do
Orthodontia aligns an uneven bite and crooked teeth. This not only improves how a smile looks, but prevents several dental health issues including:
- Abnormal tooth wear
- Tooth decay and loss
- Gum disease
- Jaw problems
Orthodontics Effects on Adult Teeth
Braces use the principle of pressure to realign teeth. They have proven to be very effective in fixing adult tooth alignment. However, since an adult’s mouth is no longer growing, some more serious alignment problems may necessitate jaw surgery.
Orthodontic Appearance Options
Many adults may not like the idea of getting braces because of the appearance they have on teeth. But orthodontia has advanced so now there are several options to make braces less visible such as:
- Ceramic Brackets: Tooth-colored ceramic brackets can be used on orthodontia. These leave only the wire as the most visible part of the braces.
- Lingual Braces: This type of orthodontia has wires and brackets like traditional braces, but instead they attach to the back of the teeth.
- Invisible Aligners: Invisible, removable aligners are becoming more and more popular. However, they cannot usually resolve more sever alignment problems.