Braces for Teens
Smiles in Progress
Benefits of Braces
The most immediate benefit of braces is also, thankfully, the most obvious: you’ll enjoy an incredible self-esteem boost as a direct result of your treatment. When you know that you finally have that perfect smile you’ve always wanted, you’re more likely to show it off – making you a much happier person as a result.
Braces can also help act as a preventative measure to correct the types of negative issues that will impact you later on in life, so regardless of which angle you choose to examine the situation from it’s clearly a good idea.
Types of Braces
Behl Orthodontics offers three different types of braces:
- Traditional braces, which are metal brackets connected by wires on the outside of each tooth.
- Lingual braces, which are “invisible braces” where brackets are placed on the inside of teeth.
- Clear braces, which are usually made out of some form of ceramic material and, as a result, are far more discreet than other types of treatment options that are available.
With these options in addition to Invisalign, we can create an orthodontic plan that will meet your needs.
How Long Will I Wear Braces?
It’s important to note that the answer to this question is obviously going to vary depending on the patient. Certain types of issues simply take longer to correct than others, and your total length of treatment will be impacted by a number of different factors.
Overall, you can probably expect to wear braces for around two years – but again, that could be longer or shorter depending on the situation. Don’t worry – your dental professional will go over all of this with you ahead of time so that you know exactly what to expect moving forward.
How Do I Care For My Braces?
Ultimately, caring for your braces is fairly straightforward. All you have to do is make sure that you brush and floss your teeth after every meal, AND make sure that you’re taking care of any food particles that may be stuck in or around the brackets.
Though at the end of the day, all of this is the type of dental hygiene approach that you should have already been practicing. Provided that you were, you really won’t notice much in the way of a difference to your normal routine.
Can I Play Sports With Braces?
It is absolutely possible to get braces and still live an active lifestyle. Having said that, you WILL want to wear a mouth guard during sports – especially those that are prone to high contact situations, like football. Doing so will not only protect your teeth, but it’ll also safeguard the brackets and wires, too.
What Can I Eat With Braces?
Overall, there are definitely certain types of foods you’ll want to steer clear from during the course of your treatment. These include any foods that are particularly sticky, for example, with hard candies being a prominent example. Likewise, you’ll want to avoid foods like popcorn that could potentially get stuck in and around the brackets, and you’ll want to stop eating very hard foods like hard pretzels that could cause damage and delay the completion of your treatment.