by Stephanie Trovato

Braces can change your life and not just from an oral health perspective. Braces can instill confidence and allow for improved self-image. Not only do cleaner, healthier teeth look better, but there are other, less obvious benefits to braces too, on a psychological and overall health level. Braces have several confidence-boosting benefits.

1. Aesthetic Improvement

Aside from dental health, the most apparent way that braces can improve confidence is by correcting aesthetic problems. Whether it’s crooked teeth, a misaligned jaw or gapped teeth, oral issues cause all sorts of awkward, embarrassing issues — awkward school photos, avoidance of the spotlight or even hesitance to smile. Any orthodontist will tell you that braces are the solution to all of these issues creating the opportunity to be bold in front of a camera or on a stage. Cosmetic dentistry allows you to control the way you look which, in turn, affects the way you feel about yourself. Most importantly, though, it lets you proudly express happiness as often as possible.

2. Stress Reduction

Braces offer the best way to straighten crooked teeth, but braces also help with stress relief. Physiologically, there are significant benefits to watching your reflection improve in the mirror. Beyond that, braces help reduce teeth grinding. Grinding teeth can create severe jaw pain and discomfort which, in turn, produces a distraction. Braces not only improve the stress response to seeing an unflattering reflection but can help keep teeth from contributing to stress in even more emotionally hurtful ways.

3. Speech Improvement

Everyone wants to be understood, and braces can help with that. Having a lisp or an overbite can be detrimental to communication. Braces help by correcting the arrangement of teeth and the alignment of the jaw allowing the opportunity to present ideas and opinions clearly. With the added benefit of others being able to understand without difficulty, the effects of braces can create a massive boost of confidence when it comes to public speaking, presentations or even making friends.

4. Digestive Ease

Nobody likes to talk about it, but there are more than just surface-level benefits to having braces and aligned teeth. Braces require more careful thought when it comes to dietary choices which help break bad food habits and encourage creating better ones. Braces also help the wearer chew his or her food more efficiently which makes it easier on the stomach. This decreases the anxiety level that can come with mealtime and allows for confidence around the table — whether with family, friends or even out on dates.

5. Cavity Prevention

Having an unhealthy mouth not only opens the door for bacteria and infection but also for cavities. Cavities are painful, distracting and can cause or be created by other, even more severe oral health concerns. Braces prevent this by allowing teeth to be straightened appropriately which allows for more access when it comes to cleaning teeth. More access allows for more plaque and disease to be washed away, leading to healthier gums and bone health.

6. Injury Prevention

Teeth that aren’t aligned correctly have a higher chance of being hurt in accidents such as those that can happen in sports or car accidents. If a tooth protrudes forward or is further back than it should be, there can be severe damage to the mouth and face if an accident occurs. Braces help keep teeth straight in the mouth limiting the number of unnecessary injuries that accidents can cause.

7. Stylistic Freedom

Especially for children, a sense of self and self-expression are incredibly important. Today, with so many options for brace colors and different styles of braces, there are plenty of opportunities to present precisely the image wanted as oral health is improving. Thankfully, the days of taunting, teasing based on intense contraptions are gone, and the days where braces contribute to the ideal self-expression and preservation of identity are here. Braces help add to self-expression allowing for unique character to be maintained without creating unnecessary anxiety, unwelcome constraints or lack of aesthetic control.

Stephanie Trovato has more than a decade of research, writing, and marketing experience covering topics such as retirement planning, creating a safe and healthy workplace, technology for driving remote business, mortgage rates and financing, home buying tactics, dental health and wellness and creating a successful business through planning. She has written for Huffington Post, Business Insider, Apartment Therapy and Celebrity Cruises.

Sources:

Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences – “The Effect of Orthodontic Intervention on Mental Health and Body Image”

MouthHealthy – Braces

MouthHealthy – Orthodontics