A smile is your introduction to everyone you meet, and a bright, beautiful smile shows the world that you feel good about both the world and yourself. Being a teenager is always challenging and sometimes confusing, as you grapple with all sorts of emotional and physical changes on your way to adulthood. But having a healthy, happy smile can help do wonders for your self-confidence and for your long-term physical health, so the earlier in your adolescence that you can start this life-changing process, the better.
An Early Start
Once you and your San Antonio orthodontist have decided that you are a candidate for treatment, then your orthodontist can assess how much correction is needed and which of types of braces will be best suited for you. An early start on this process guarantees a number of options to choose from and, in the long run, an easier treatment geared not just towards achieving a beautiful smile, but ensuring that the orthodontic correction will aid in the continued growth of healthy teeth and jaw.
Early intervention that correctly aligns the teeth can save you from suffering with common but painful neck and jaw problems in the future and help ensure that any corrections that are needed later will be less intrusive and overwhelming. So while the initial financial output is a consideration, it is far outweighed by what you can save in expensive and sometimes complicated treatments, including surgeries, in the future.
Braces and Their Impact on Health
Braces aren’t just a cosmetic solution to crooked teeth or teeth with gaps: they can be an integral part of good health. Research has connected poor oral hygiene to a number of diseases and disorders, including heart health because gum disease has been linked to an increased risk of heart attack. And when your teeth are not properly aligned, food may not be chewed effectively, and this can adversely affect digestion and decrease crucial nutrient absorption.
While many of the health problems stemming from improper oral care may take a long time to appear, the earlier you start the process of correcting the problems with your teeth, the more you will be able to enjoy your smile and not be worried about what might happen in the future.
The Benefits of Teen Braces
If you need orthodontic correction it’s important to know that the current options in braces go far beyond the old metal braces that caused so much discomfort and embarrassment. If you do decide on metal, today’s metal braces are smaller and less painful than the old kind. There are also ceramic braces, lingual braces (brackets and wires are on the inside of the teeth, making them far less noticeable) and other choices available. Talk to Dr. Keith Blalock, your San Antonio orthodontist about which type of braces is best suited for you.
Being a teenager means self-consciousness about everything from the length of your hair or skirt to the appearance of your smile. A teenager who may shy away from socializing because he or she is embarrassed by crooked teeth or other orthodontic problems may be shocked by how different life seems after that great smile is achieved. Whether it makes you more outgoing, more willing to participate in activities or just happier with yourself, life before braces and life after braces can be very different.
