More and more adults are wearing braces
Published Thursday October 1st, 2009
Melissa Lockhart doesn't look or feel like her old self; in fact, since she had major orthodontic work, she is unrecognizable to people who have known her all of her life.
"As a child, my teeth were extremely crooked. I had a major overbite."
The cost of braces was prohibitive for her parents, she says. By the time she reached her 20s, she was diagnosed with Temporomandibular joint disorder or TMJ syndrome. Both her upper and lower palates were very narrow, which caused extreme teeth crowding and significant pain.
She was 28 when she had braces placed on her teeth. Those stayed on for a year. Then she underwent surgery to expand her upper palate.
"They put a fixed appliance in the roof of my mouth and I was given a key and every night I had to crank the appliance on the roof of my mouth to expand my jaw."
In two-and-a-half-years the braces were removed. She didn't recognize the face staring back at her in the mirror.
"I cried for a while. Actually, they try and prepare you that you are going to look different."
These were tears of joy but also some of sadness. For a while she lost her sense of identity. It took almost a year, she says, before she became comfortable with her new appearance.
"When you look in the mirror for 30 years and you look like one person and two-and-a-half-years later you look like somebody completely different, it's an adjustment."
Lockhart says she understands hers is an extreme example of what happens when someone goes through orthodontic treatment.
"But still, when you go from having crooked teeth to having a perfectly healthy smile it's a little overwhelming."
Now she loves her new look. She readily smiles and she is very proud of her beautiful white, straight teeth.
Lockhart says she wouldn't hesitate to go through the treatment again.
"My self-esteem has gone way up. I am way more confident."
She wears a retainer every night. It's necessary to keep her teeth from shifting in her mouth.
Whatever it takes, she says, she is committed to taking care of her new, beautiful smile that she wants to keep for the rest of her life.
You are never too old for perfectly straight, healthy teeth.
Dr. Gerald Zeit, a representative of the Canadian Association of Orthodontists, has treated patients in their 70s.
"It's not the majority of my practice but there's no reason why teeth can't move at any age. I have had a few patients in their 70s and my partner actually had a patient who was in his 80s who had treatment done.
"It's actually quite exciting. The older patients who do come in and have treatment are a lot of fun to work with. They are kind of proud of themselves for having the strength and the will to get this done."
Because dentistry is so advanced in this country, it is possible for everyone to keep their teeth for a lifetime.
"People no longer think replacing one's teeth with dentures is inevitable, says Dr. Zeit.
Sixty per cent of his adult patients are between 25 and 35 years old while 40 per cent are somewhere between 35 to their mid-70s.
"There's no age at which it won't work. It's never too late to have a perfect smile. It's never too late to work on improving the health of the teeth."
Many adults, for a variety of reasons, are turning to orthodontic work to correct issues with their teeth so they can enjoy a beautiful smile.
Since he started his practice in 1986, Dr. Zeit says he has noticed a gradual increase in the number of adults wearing braces. There are several reasons for this.
Many adults either didn't have the opportunity or chose not to have orthodontic treatment done as children.
Now, he says, most adults understand the importance of maintaining good dental health and they see both the health and cosmetic benefits of orthodontic treatment.
Some adults who've experienced dental difficulties want restorative work and orthodontics are part of that rehabilitation process to get the person back to having a healthier mouth, he says.
If you decide you want to go through the process of straightening your teeth there are things you need to consider. Depending on the level of treatment you need, there is no set time you can expect to have braces on your teeth.
"A simple problem might take six to nine months to fix and a more complicated process could last two or three years."
Adults considering braces want to know what's wrong with their teeth, how long it will take to fix the problem and what they will have to go through during the treatment.
"One of the things that most adults are concerned about is the appearance of braces. There are a number of options available that can help with that.
"We have much smaller braces. The traditional metal braces that we use are much smaller and neater-looking than when I was a child."
There are also clear braces that are not immediately noticeable.
There are some orthodontists who do treatments where the braces are placed on the back of the teeth.
Like children, Dr. Zeit says, many adults worry about how they will look with braces.
"My experience has been that after several weeks of wearing braces most adults, who might have been very self-conscious, don't seem very bothered by that."
Most important, he says, is that people take the time to clean and care for their teeth and pay attention to what they eat while they go through orthodontic treatment.
One of the things most adults and children look forward to, he says, is the feeling of their teeth without braces.
After the braces come off, a retainer is necessary to ensure the teeth don't shift.
"It's rare that people's teeth shift right back to the starting point but teeth, in the early going, will have a tendency to drift in the direction toward where they came from.
"There's a potential for them to move throughout life and if we want to keep them in their most ideal positions, retention is a very important part of the whole process."
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