Many people who consider straightening their teeth never do. Often, they either postpone it indefinitely or just decide that it won’t make a difference, so it’s not worth it.
Of course, we’ve looked at many ways in which straightening your teeth can make a difference. It can improve your oral health as you get older. It can make it easier for you to get hired or take advantage of other opportunities.
But new a new study shows that it’s not just that straight teeth are better, it’s that crooked teeth can have a significant impact on your quality of life. The study shows that people who have malocclusion–teeth that don’t come together properly because they’re crooked, crowded, etc.–have a lower quality of life than people with straighter teeth.
Teenagers in Hong Kong
This study sampled 300 18-year-olds from Hong Kong. The 135 young men and 165 young women attended 45 different high schools. The population was selected to avoid young adults who had previously had orthodontic treatment, as well as those who had serious oral health conditions.
Researchers compared results about oral health quality of life and tried to see which factors might influence them, including: household income, parents’ education, malocclusion, cavities, gum disease, and more.
Most of these young men and women had oral health problems: 95% had gum disease to some extent, and 59% had cavities. However, the presence of gum disease and cavities didn’t seem to significantly impact their quality of life. There were actually only two factors that seemed to correlate with quality of life: household income and malocclusion. Income improved quality of life, by reducing physical pain, psychological discomfort, and psychological disability. On the other hand, malocclusion reduced quality of life by increasing levels of psychological discomfort and disability.
Options to Straighten Teeth in Orange County
Researchers in this study claim it might not be generally applicable. However, the results confirm what we have already known from our patients: crooked teeth matter, and straightening them can make a difference in your life.
The good news is that you have many options to straighten your teeth here in Orange County. At Rice Dentistry, we’ve been serving the community for more than 30 years, and over all those years we’ve learned that there’s no one perfect orthodontic treatment. That’s why we offer a full range of orthodontic approaches to help you get the results you want.
We offer traditional metal braces because this approach is still the best approach for some orthodontic movements. In addition, we have adopted many newer techniques, including Invisalign and the Inman Aligner.
In addition, we understand that the time required for straightening your teeth is a big drawback, so we offer faster techniques. Instant orthodontics using veneers is a good option in some cases, but for more people AcceleDent accelerated orthodontics helps them complete orthodontic treatment up to 50% faster–and with a significant reduction in orthodontic pain. Plus we offer Six Month Smiles ®.
To learn more about these options and find the one that’s right for you, please call (949) 551-5902 today for an appointment with a cosmetic dentist at Rice Dentistry in Irvine.
