Posts Tagged ‘crooked teeth’

The other night we had fresh corn on the cob… and it was fantastic! I love good corn! When I was finished, my wife looked at my plate and said “wow! Look at that!” I was wondering what she could find so fascinating about empty corn cobs, but she commented on how well I cleaned up every morsel of wonderful corn. Now I have to explain why this is noteworthy…

I am almost done with my Invisalign treatment to straighten my teeth. I never felt my teeth were grossly crooked, but I could tell that some areas were wearing prematurely, as teeth often do when they are crowded or crooked. So I decided to have my teeth straightened – but I was not interested in all the metal brackets and wires needed to straighten teeth in the past. Instead, I chose Invisalign, because I would not have to show off any metal in my smile, would not have the discomfort of all that hardware in my mouth, and it would be so easy to keep my teeth clean during Invisalign treatment.

So now, as I am almost finished with my Invisalign treatment, I have been happy with the alignment that has been achieved. I appreciate the improved looks, the better balance of my bite. But I had not really paid attention to the improved function…My bite is more efficient now! My empty corn cobs look clean and well eaten, instead of all raggedy like before. And I don’t get all the stuff stuck in between my front teeth like I used to!

So the moral of this story is: if you want to show off well eaten corn cobs, use Invisalign to straighten up your teeth! Ok, maybe that’s not the best take-away point here. But protecting your teeth by balancing your bite pays dividends far beyond a gorgeous smile – you become more efficient! And when it comes to fantastic food… don’t waste another bite!

What’s your Real Age? No, this is not just asking a lady at her birthday if she is really 29 AGAIN. This is about how healthy you are compared to others of your same chronological age.

There are many factors that figure into our Real Age… Diet, exercise, and sleep habits are the ones you’d expect on the list, and they are definitely there. Stresses in your life, and how you deal with them, also play a major part. Even daily habits like how fast you drive, what kind of car you drive, and if you always wear your seat belt are considered.

So are some other daily habits – like brushing and flossing. Yep, they are not only on the list, but it is reported that just daily brushing and flossing can add over 6 years to your life! Another way to say that is it will make your Real Age over 6 years younger than your classmates who don’t brush and floss! I believe that having good healthy gums and teeth without cavities will enhance your life even more.

How does this work? There is fantastic blood supply to the gums and tongue. This is good news, because that helps injuries in those areas heal quickly. But the flip side of that rapid blood flow is that if the gums are infected, you are pumping that infection throughout your body. Think of that… through the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, muscles, and even your brain. Is it any wonder that gum disease is being linked to all sorts of other diseases in the body, including heart disease, strokes, diabetes and even low birth weight babies?

If you lose teeth, for whatever reason, you find yourself in other longevity problems. The more teeth you are missing, the harder it is to eat healthy food. Many foods that might be best for you, like raw veggies or whole grains, might be avoided if you have weak or missing teeth. And if you can’t chew well, your food doesn’t digest as well. Removable dentures, however well done, are never as good as the original equipment was!

So the moral of this Real Age computation? Many of the factors that determine our Real Age are things we can control. And as a dentist, of course I am going to stress the ones I can help you with.

• Gum health can be improved
• Weak or broken teeth can be strengthened
• Missing teeth can be replaced with built-in, non-removable teeth
• Crooked teeth that don’t line up well can be straightened

There are many reasons to enhance your dental health, and some great fringe benefits – your smile looks and feels great!

“I don’t need to look like a movie star!”

“I’ve had these crooked teeth forever; why change now?”

And then my favorite: “I’m already married – I don’t have to look great!”

There are many lines I hear from people with crowded teeth… often like those above. What many people do not realize is that when teeth are crowded, they move outside the ideal arch form. Then they hit against other teeth in ways they weren’t designed to do, and they wear prematurely. Sometimes worn teeth are more sensitive to hot, cold or sweets. I often see teeth so dramatically worn that they fracture and need to be rebuilt. That obviously involves time and money.

The good news here is that there are now cool options for straightening teeth! Invisalign is a system for straightening teeth without brackets and wires! It really is almost invisible! It is fast and efficient, easy to keep teeth clean and no metal in your mouth to deal with!

So the bottom line is this: there are long term reasons why you should have nice straight teeth. And the icing on the cake – it’s OK to look better too! Even if you’re already married!

This weekend I wore an Invisalign shirt to the computer store. I had made my purchase, and had actually started walking away from the checkout counter, when the clerk called me back. “Do you do Invisalign?” he asked. “Well yes – do you have questions about it?” He then smiled at me, and pointed to his crooked teeth and asked if I thought Invisalign could help his smile. Of course, I could not give a definitive answer without a complete diagnosis and records, but it sure seemed like a good case and I told him so. We then chatted for a few minutes about how the treatment works – straightening teeth without bands, brackets and wires bonded to the teeth.

That experience reminded me that even though many people have seen ads about Invisalign, they may not understand how amazing the technology is behind the system of braces without wires. So here is a very simplified short course…
Extensive records are taken, including complete x-rays and diagnostic models of your teeth. The dentist then maps out where the teeth would ideally be placed, and sends all this data to the Invisalign folks. They scan it into the computers and create three dimensional images of both jaws and the present arrangement of the teeth. Then the computer is used to place those teeth in the ideal arrangement as dictated by the dentist. Next a series of steps is outlined with very small steps progressing from the present to the final position. The dentist reviews this with 3-D software, and is able to review each step from any angle. When the dentist approves the planned steps, the computer creates actual physical models of each stage in the treatment plan, and creates clear plastic “aligners” that fit perfectly over that precise stage. The aligners are trimmed, polished, and placed in sequence so that as you wear them, each aligner moves the teeth just slightly, continuing along the defined treatment course. The aligners are worn continuously, except while eating, for typically about two weeks, and then you change to the next aligner. The whole process is often finished in about one year.

The aligners are thin, clear plastic, and are almost invisible. Often you can have a conversation with a person, and they don’t realize you have them in place. You don’t have to put up with brackets and wires on your teeth, and they make it easy to clean your teeth too!

Invisalign is an amazing technology that can help people have the dazzling smile they desire! To find out if you are a good candidate for Invisalign, just ask!