October is National Orthodontic Health Month! Did you know that orthodontic treatments can improve the health of your mouth? When most people think about their oral health, they think about brushing and flossing on a daily basis and seeing their dentist every six months. However, you may have oral health issues that aren’t corrected at-home and during professional dental cleanings. For example: do you bite your lips or cheeks often? If you do, this could be due to having misaligned teeth or an uncorrected over or underbite. When it comes to solving these problems, you need the help of an experienced orthodontist.

The Importance of Your Orthodontic Health

Orthodontists correct malalignments of the teeth and jawbones in order to improve the appearance of your smile and your facial appearance. Severe overbites, crossbites, and underbites can negatively affect an individual’s facial appearance. This can make them feel self-conscious any time they are out in public. 

Crooked, crowded, and improperly gapped teeth can make it difficult to reach all the surfaces of your teeth while brushing, and you may have difficulty getting floss between your teeth. This can result in an increased rate of dental decay and an increased risk for gum disease. Thankfully, receiving orthodontic care and getting braces can help correct all of these problems so that you can celebrate your oral health and show off your beautiful smile.

Benefits of Early Orthodontic Treatment

Early orthodontic treatment can help children love their smiles and their teeth by correcting over and underbites, as well as jaws that are too small while the jaw and facial bones are still developing. When children are young, their jaws and facial bones are still growing, which means timely treatment with orthodontic appliances can be used to stop and correct the development of over and underbites. 

For example, reverse pull headgear can help correct underbites in children and it is usually used between the ages of eight and ten. An expander can be used to increase the space in the upper jaw so that it matches the lower jaw and enough space is available for all the adult teeth. When these types of orthodontic appliances are used at an early age, it can dramatically reduce the need for braces or clear aligners as a teenager or adult.

Improving Self-Esteem and Smiles with Braces and Clear Aligners

When it comes to improving your self-esteem and feeling great about your smile, one of the things you can do is straighten your teeth with either traditional braces or clear aligners. Having severely crooked, gapped, or crowded teeth may make you feel self-conscious during social gatherings, at work, or with friends. You may also refuse to smile for pictures. Thankfully, getting clear braces or clear aligners can help you celebrate your smile while being a little more inconspicuous about having orthodontic treatment.

Traditional Braces

Traditional braces are great for correcting severely crooked teeth as well as certain types of over, under, and crossbites. Of course, when you think of traditional braces, you probably think of shiny metal on all of your teeth. Thankfully, straightening your teeth with traditional braces no longer means having a mouth full of visible metal. Clear ceramic braces are affixed to the front of your teeth just like metal braces, but they are clear, which means they aren’t nearly as noticeable. In fact, most people only notice the metal wire, which is still silver.

Clear Aligners

If you have mild to moderate teeth alignment problems, clear aligners may be the answer. Clear aligners are plastic aligning trays that fit over your teeth. One of the most common brands of clear aligners is Invisalign, which boasts SmartTrack technology to help your teeth move more predictably so that you can achieve a beautiful, straight smile. Since the aligning trays are removable, there’s no need to adjust the types of foods you eat or how you eat them. You’ll just need to remember to brush and floss your teeth after eating and before you reinsert your aligning trays into your mouth.

Improving Your Smile with Help from Our Orthodontist in Melbourne, FL

If you want to be able to celebrate your orthodontic health and improve your smile, our orthodontist in Melbourne, Florida can help. We offer early orthodontic intervention for kids, surgical orthodontic treatment, orthodontic appliances, and teeth straightening via traditional and clear braces, as well as Invisalign.

To learn more about our orthodontic services and Invisalign in Melbourne, FL, contact us online or call us today at 321-254-5232.