Every child imagines themselves with a perfect movie-star set of gleaming adult teeth like two rows of perfectly shaped and spaced white chiclet candies. When reality doesn't live up to this expectation, the let down is almost as bad as the hassle of having teach that grow in crooked.
Of course, after a while, the hassle starts to get to you as well, especially as an adult if you didn't get braces as a child.
Constantly worrying if people are staring at your teeth, trying to smile with your lips closed, and struggling to eat foods that require the usual cutting edge of aligned front teeth gets old pretty fast but it's also normal.
You get used to carefully biting things with your back teeth and trying not to grin in public. By the time you finally decide to get your teeth straightened once and for all, the difference can astound you.
While there are tons of tips and lists on why straight teeth are healthier, prettier, etc. we've got a list of reasons to straighten that you can really relate to.
Here are five things you'll finally be able to enjoy once your teeth have been pushed into their proper places.
1) Biting Through Sandwiches
Snaggle-toothed isn't just a description of the monster under a child's bed, it's a real condition and it can make eating perfectly normal food absolute hell.
If you have ever bitten into a nice ham or turkey sandwich only to realize that you've only punched holes in the bread and meat rather than cutting a nice clean bite mark, your time has come.
With straight teeth, you can leave a clean semi-circle bite-mark in everything from sandwiches to crunchy apples without worrying about having to tear away chunks or hurting your gums with the force it once required to take a complete bite.
2) Unscratched Inner Cheeks and Lips
Teeth were made to have a cutting edge to help you eat things (like ham sandwiches) quickly and easily.
Your lips and inner cheeks are supposed to be safe from these edges because the teeth are supposed to make a smooth, semi-rounded surface where your soft tissue touches and only cut what is between your jaw and soft palate.
However, when your teeth stick out at odd angles, the insides of your lips and teeth can get cut up when you speak, laugh or play sports.
Once your teeth are finally aligned, you can say goodbye to all those sore iron-tasting soft tissue scratches.
3) Much Easier Flossing
Flossing is enough of a hassle when your teeth are normal but when they face in unpredictable and cockeyed directions, it can become nearly impossible to get the floss into the actual space between your teeth and you're at a higher risk of scraping your hands on stray tooth edges.
Once your teeth are straight, flossing will seem like a breeze as the dental floss slides easily between each aligned pair of teeth.
Of course, if you still hate sticking the floss in your mouth, switch to flossers four double the new convenience.
4) Better Diction and Enunciation
What you probably noticed most about how your teeth and lips interacted was the scraping, but what everyone else notices is that snaggled teeth have a way of getting in the way of clear pronunciation.
When your lips catch on your teeth, they can't form syllables as clearly and you wind up sounding like you're mumbling all the time.
With straight teeth, you may be surprised just how many people understand you more clearly and possibly even comment on your new clarity of speech.
5) No More Double-Takes
There's nothing more confusing to the human mind than an image that disagrees with itself. When people see a pretty or handsome face, they write in the rest of you like a movie character.
However, when crooked teeth suddenly join the image of your pretty face, there's always that confused double-take.
No doubt, you are well and truly tired of seeing that expression and after professional straightening, your teeth will finally match the rest of your attractive appearance and the double-take will be gone for good.
Most of society has the issue of teeth straightening backward. You don't do it for other people, for your job, or to look more like a movie star. You do it for you, your quality of life, and your happiness with yourself.
For whatever other reasons you get your teeth straightened, remember to take a few minutes to really enjoy the feel and experience of finally having straight, cooperative teeth.
For more on what cosmetic dentistry can do for you, contact us today!
