If you struggle to get your teeth straight, you’ll want to do everything you can to keep your smile in place. You’re undoubtedly motivated to wear your retainer when you remove your braces or finish your Invisalign treatment to protect your newly aligned smile.
However, wearing your retainer can become more of a headache as time passes. We not only understand but also recognize the importance of retainers in protecting your results. So, to assist existing patients and beyond, we’d like to highlight five advantages of retainers.
What is a Retainer?
A teeth retainer is a tailored device worn over your teeth in your mouth. It aids in keeping your teeth in their new, accurate place after braces.
Role of Retainers For Your Teeth
Even after braces have straightened your teeth, their new posture is still unstable. The gums, bones, and muscles need time to acclimatize to the change. Chewing and grinding are everyday activities that can cause your teeth to shift. Furthermore, teeth shifting can, in turn, lead to malocclusion. It happens when your upper and lower teeth do not line up when you close your mouth.
For a long time, your braces kept your teeth straight. After you remove your braces, there’s no way to prevent your teeth from taking their original position. In this scenario, wearing a retainer might prove helpful to prevent your teeth from moving. Consider the following: Braces straighten your teeth, but retainers keep them straight. They help your teeth retain their position.
Here are the top five advantages of getting a retainer for your teeth:
1. Maintaining Orthodontic Results
Retainers in Leduc are intended to keep your teeth structurally sound for the rest of your life. The first month is critical for proper retainer wear. Teeth are more likely to revert to their natural crooked shape at this age. A natural physiological drift process develops as we age, causing the width of our smiles to narrow and the teeth to shift. Wearing retainers will help you stay on track. You’ll be grateful later.
2. Stabilizing Jaw Development
A TMJ retainer will help keep your jaw in place and relieve pain. Yet, the retainers near you are incapable of restricting or controlling jaw growth and will be unable to protect the bite relationships from the impacts of unfavorable jaw growth. Fortunately, this form of abnormal jaw growth is uncommon.
Jaw growth typically ceases by age 16 in females and 18–21 in males. When the jaws cease growing, orthognathic surgery is frequently performed. When the jaws do not align correctly and orthodontics alone cannot achieve a good bite, surgical orthodontics is required.
3. Enhancing Oral Health
Straight teeth are easier to clean. Wearing your retainers to straighten teeth lets you keep your braces or Invisalign treatment in place while maintaining good oral hygiene at level one. It makes brushing and flossing easier, allowing you to keep your teeth straight and white. If you’re having trouble remembering to wear your retainer or bring it with you, Leduc Dental Centre has some advice:
- Keep it in the same place (just like your keys).
- Ensure you have enough room for your retainer case in your handbag, backpack, or whatever you carry.
- Encourage youngsters to wear retainers by giving small gifts, especially in the first few weeks.
4. Versatility and Convenience
When you wear braces to fix gaps in your teeth, it takes longer to stabilize them. It is true even for highly dislocated teeth, big overbites, and underbites. Teeth that must be moved a long distance or repositioned should be held firmly in their new positions until the mouth can adapt to the alterations. Your retainer contributes to this.
As you can see, the effectiveness of your orthodontic treatment depends on you diligently wearing your retainer. It keeps your teeth from sliding back to their pre-treatment position, and there is a range of retainers and retention alternatives to match each patient’s particular needs. Hence, retainers are both versatile and convenient.
5. Boosting Self-Confidence
It takes time for the soft tissues and bones to adjust to the changes in tooth alignment after your braces are removed. They gradually adjust to their new position; once this occurs, your teeth will rarely shift out of place.
Wear your retainers for around twelve to twenty-two hours every day for at least two months to avoid a relapse. The surrounding gums and bones take longer to acclimatize to their new location than your teeth. Retainers help to accelerate the alignment process and stabilize your bite.
By doing all this, directly or indirectly, retainers help you boost your self-confidence.
Reach Out to Our Dentist in Leduc
If you’ve had braces removed and want to keep your smile looking fantastic for the rest of your life, a retainer is an excellent option. Retainers are easy-to-wear accessories at night to keep your teeth straight.
If you are searching for a reliable dentist near you to help you with retainer design, retainer placement, and after-retainer treatment guidance, visit Leduc Dental Centre when you have the chance! We look forward to seeing you soon!