After the week you’ve had, you’ve earned this. Nothing quite makes the week melt away like sipping a cool drink by the pool. It’s been entirely too long since you’ve gotten to make yourself a cocktail. This week was particularly stressful because you spent the majority of it giving presentations to coworkers and clients. You can handle this in small batches, but too much can really wear you out. You start to worry about the little things, like if they are going to notice your crooked teeth. You feel like you missed the boat for braces when you were younger, and now it might be too late. You can’t imagine seeing clients with those huge braces you remember other kids having when you were younger. They’d ask you to find an adult. Fortunately, you have a host of options from the orthodontist in Vancleave.

Beyond Braces

Braces have gotten a bad reputation over the years despite helping a litany of people straighten their teeth. Many people only have memories of their childhood or images on TV of characters struggling to talk while they have tackle boxes in their mouths. Orthodontics has advanced greatly over the years, and now patients have more options than ever when it comes to straightening their teeth.

Traditional Metal Braces

The metal braces of today are not like those of yesteryear. The brackets have gotten smaller so they are less apparent to both the wearer and the observer. Metal braces have been the preference for children and teens alike because of their durability and cost effectiveness. They still work the same way because they still give people straighter smiles. Brackets are applied to each tooth and connected via a thin wire. This wire is threaded through metal rings that are around the back teeth and held in place with tiny rubber bands on the brackets. Your dentist needs to adjust this wire every few weeks in order to straighten your teeth as well as monitor your progress.

Clear Ceramic Braces

For the more image conscious teenager, or even adult, there is the option of clear ceramic braces. These work in the same manner as metal braces, with the key difference being that the brackets are made of a clear ceramic. This makes them less visible while on the teeth. The wires and bands are also either clear or teeth colored to make the entire apparatus nearly invisible.

Six Month Smiles

This is a more concentrated use of bracket braces. Rather than straightening all of your teeth, only the most visible teeth are realigned, namely the top 4 front teeth. This can achieve a dramatic result in half the time of traditional braces.  For those who want fast braces, Six Month Smiles is the best compromise between cost and speed.

Invisalign

Another option is Invisalign. This system uses a series of clear plastic aligner trays to gradually straighten your teeth. They simply slip on over your teeth. They have the added advantage of being removable, which makes it easier for patients to eat or clean their teeth. Complete treatment lasts from 8-18 months, but hardly anyone but you will notice because the trays are transparent and it will look like you don’t have anything on at all.

Which One Is Right For Me?

If you are interested in having your teeth straightened, please make an appointment with Parker Dental and Orthodontics at one of our 4 locations in Mississippi and Alabama so we can decide which option best suits your needs. It’s never too late to have a straighter smile, so give us a call today.