Everyone wants to have a beautiful, white smile to show off to their friends and family, but achieving that look may seem like a daunting task. Having crooked, gapped teeth can make your smile look imperfect and cause your confidence to take a hit. Fortunately, orthodontic treatment can correct these issues. Whether you choose braces or Invisalign, you’ll start seeing improvements before you know it. There are also several oral health benefits to undergoing orthodontic treatment, so read on to learn about three of them.
Benefit #1: Put a Stop to Teeth Grinding
Bruxism is an oral health condition characterized by clenching your jaw or grinding your teeth. It’s most common while sleeping, which can make it difficult to identify. Bruxism can severely wear down your teeth over time, causing them to break or crack.
Research has found several factors that may trigger bruxism while sleeping, including having a misaligned bite. This is because your body constantly adjusts while you sleep and tries forcing your upper and lower jaws together properly, which leads to clenching and grinding. Bite issues are a common orthodontic problem that can be treated with braces or Invisalign.
Benefit #2: Stop Chronic Headaches & Jaw Pain
Along with an uneven facial appearance and nightly teeth grinding, bite problems can also lead to temporomandibular joint (TMJ) issues. This occurs when your jaws don’t come together properly and makes them feel strained and overworked. The resulting soreness and swelling around the jaw joints can lead to in serious pain and may even impact muscles in the neck and cause headaches.
Receiving orthodontic treatment may be what you need to get to the root of your chronic pain. It will help relieve discomfort in your TMJ, giving you a pain-free smile.
Benefit #3: Adress Sleep-related Issues
Snoring is often caused by a condition called sleep apnea. This happens when the upper airway is restricted or blocked. This prevents you from breathing correctly while you sleep. People with sleep apnea may wake up hundreds of times each night, making it difficult for them to get enough rest. This can also result in a variety of health issues, including heart disease, memory problems, and even death.
In some cases, orthodontic treatment can help patients with sleep apnea. Realigning their bite creates more space in the back of the mouth, which may make it easier for them to breathe. This may also widen the hard palate of the mouth to clear the airway.
Receiving orthodontic treatment offers many more benefits than just a nice smile. If you suffer from any of the above issues, speak with your dentist to learn if orthodontics is what you need to achieve both a nicer smile and a healthier body!
About the Practice
OakBrook Dental & Orthodontics features five skilled dentists: Drs. Nathan Coughlin, Manhvu Nyugen, Tae You, Vinhson Nguyen, and Stephanie Weng. Patient care is their top priority, so they administer a range of specialized services to give you a healthy, happy smile. They also offer orthodontic treatments, like braces and Invisalign, to fix alignment and bite problems as well as other oral health issues. To make an appointment or for more information on their orthodontic treatment offerings, call OakBrook Dental & Orthodontics at (469) 331-4748 or visit their website.