Raising a child is the toughest job you will ever have.
If you have a child or children, then you will understandably fret about their health and their future. It is only natural! However, your job may appear to get a whole lot harder when your dentist tells you that your child needs braces in Edinburgh. But there really is nothing to worry about.
While some parents will just know that their child will need an aligner to straighten their teeth, due to a visual misalignment or protrusion, other parents can find this news quite alarming.
Rest assured, that having braces in Edinburgh is one of the most common procedures undertaken in the UK, and will have a great long term outcome for your child.
Signs that your child may need an aligner
Even if this news comes as a bolt from the blue, there may have been signs and behaviours that you picked up on, indicating that your child could benefit from having orthodontic treatments.
Common child behaviours like thumb sucking, chewing on clothing or mouth breathing are all indicators that there may be an underlying issue with your child’s mouth.
Similarly, if your child has problems with chewing or biting food, early or late loss of baby teeth, or if you notice that your child’s jaw clicks, these signs may all indicate an orthodontic problem.
Benefits of aligners
While it is hard to convince your child that orthodontic work is a good thing (and maybe even yourself), there is a reason that this treatment is used so regularly. It yields positive results long term and has a very high success rate.
Orthodontics has no long term negative impacts on health or well-being and actually improves your child’s health too!
Short term advantages
While having a metal brace fitted to their teeth is not likely to be on the top of your child’s list of fun activities, within a day of the aligner being fitted, they will start to feel the difference.
Behaviours like thumb sucking, chewing of fingers, toys or even mouth breathing are all your child’s way of trying to resolve an unusual feeling of pressure in their mouth. This pressure is due to their teeth not being positioned correctly and may also be the result of their teeth not aligning properly. Therefore, adding pressure to the inside of their mouth counteracts this feeling, making them less likely to pursue these habits..
A brace will resolve this unusual feeling by moving the teeth, while also eradicating any associated problems from their misalignments, such as headaches, migraines or neck pain.
Long term
In the long run, orthodontic work will leave your child with a gorgeous, straight smile that will boost their confidence.
Also, it’s not all about appearances! Straighter teeth are easier to clean and so, orthodontic procedures at an earlier stage in life are a great step forward towards great long-term oral health. Similarly, your child will be less likely to suffer from acid reflux, malnutrition due to poor digestion, cardiovascular diseases like angina or arrhythmias, diabetes, and cancer.