Straightening your teeth is not just about a great smile. While correcting crooked or crowded teeth can improve your appearance by bringing teeth, lips and face into proportion, it can also contribute to your overall dental health and wellbeing.
Easier Brushing
Having straight teeth will help you maintain better oral hygiene and reduce your long-term risk of decay and bad breath. Crooked teeth are harder to clean, allowing plaque to build up in areas that trap food residue, causing bacteria to multiply in neglected spaces, heightening the risk of developing cavities and bad breath. Nobody wants to spend any more time in the dentist’s chair than they need to.
Oral Health
People with straight teeth are less prone to gum disease, which happens when plaque deposits infect the gums, causing it to become swollen, red and bleed easily. Over time if left untreated, it can impact the support of teeth and eventually cause them to loosen prematurely. Studies have shown that when teeth are properly aligned, gums fit tighter around the teeth, resulting in better gum health.
Tooth Function
Teeth and jaws that are misaligned can cause disproportionate pressure on some teeth causing abnormal wear, gum recession, surrounding tissue and bone damage and sometimes, facial pain and headaches.
Our teeth also play a vital role in speech. The simple formation of sounds and the enunciation of words can be a challenge for those with gapped or crooked teeth.
Social Benefits
The predominant reason for straightening teeth is to feel good about your smile. The most wonderful experience for us as an orthodontic practice is to see the transformation in patients who came to us lacking in confidence to smile and laugh and in some cases even have their photo taken.
Having straight teeth won’t guarantee you your dream job or your true love – a great smile is a boost to your self-confidence, which improves your outlook on life, allowing you to take advantage of all the wonderful opportunities that come your way.
