When you think about oral health, having straight teeth does not necessarily seem to fit into place. For the most part, this is only considered a cosmetic requirement. It explains why many people are comfortable with the idea of keeping their teeth as they are, even when orthodontics in Houston and Porter, TX is available.
If you have mixed feelings about trying out orthodontic treatment because you consider it a cosmetic preference, you have more to learn. Read on for more about the place of orthodontics in maintaining excellent oral health.
What Is Orthodontics?
It is a dental treatment that seeks to achieve proper teeth alignment, by aligning any malpositioned teeth.
The area of specialization for an orthodontist is in jawbone and teeth structures. This means that they spend most of their time addressing the development of the jawbone relative to the positioning of teeth. Therefore, to say that orthodontics in Highway 6 is solely about improving the appearance of patients’ smiles is a disservice to the amount of work that orthodontists put in teeth corrections.
Understanding The Process of Orthodontics
Orthodontics in East Little York differs from one patient to another, depending on the oral problem in question. The main oral problems corrected in orthodontics are crooked teeth, gaps between teeth, and crowded mouths. All these have a different approach.
Still, orthodontic practice is about using controlled pressure to make teeth move in the desired position. The pressure should also be consistent over a certain period so that teeth move as you want them to. This involves the use of different oral appliances, ranging from metal brackets to retainers and plastic-like teeth aligners.
The results of orthodontic treatment do not show up immediately you begin your treatment. It may take weeks to months before you can realize the goals you have for your smile. The reason is that to reposition teeth, you must bank not on the tooth structure alone, but also the jawbone. The bone tissue needs to go through regeneration, creating new bone tissues that will support the teeth in the new position. All this takes time and consistency.
How Does Orthodontics Relate to Proper Oral Health?
The mere act of moving teeth to a new position may not seem like much to you. However, with a closer look, you begin to understand that orthodontics is about the functionality of your mouth first, and then the aesthetic aspects later. Some of those aspects are realized through:
- Correcting improper bites – there are three improper bites in dentistry. An overbite is when the upper front teeth stick out more than the lower teeth, because of the jawbone structure. An underbite is when the opposite happens so that the lower front teeth are sticking out forward than the upper teeth. A crossbite, on the other hand, is a case where the upper and lower jaws do not close properly when you bring them together. These problems with your bites can make your experiences with food displeasing.
- Improving oral hygiene – when your teeth are overlapping, your oral hygiene efforts at home may not pay off as much. The issue comes about when your toothbrush bristles and dental floss cannot access the overlapped teeth. It creates room for plaque to hide in such areas of your mouth. This not only makes you prone to dental decay and gum disease but also affects oral hygiene standards.
- Relaxing the jaw muscles – the pressure of an improper bite can put too much tension on your jaw muscles, causing constriction and soreness. Besides, this can also be the root cause of temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD), as well as migraine headaches. By repositioning teeth in your mouth, it relaxes the jaw muscles, giving you more flexibility to move your jawbone.
- Decreasing oral accidents – biting yourself is not uncommon when you have misaligned teeth. Efforts to talk or eat all become opportunities for you to bite yourself. The frequent biting of your inner cheeks can be the cause of mouth sores that make your life that much difficult to enjoy.
- Improving the facial structure – the jawbone and teeth play a big role in the structure of your face. Your youthfulness also relies on how well your jawbone supports the facial muscles. With orthodontic treatment, correcting the jawbone and the positioning of teeth affects the facial structure.