Many people think of teeth straightening as cosmetic — but there is so much more to gain from orthodontics than just an aesthetically pleasing smile (though that’s a pretty great bonus!). Tooth placement can also have a huge impact on our overall oral health.
In this guide, we will explore in which ways clear aligners and braces can improve your oral health. We hope you leave with a better understanding of the wide range of benefits that an aligned smile can provide, as well as an idea of whether these treatments are right for you and your unique smile.
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Can Orthodontic Treatment Improve My Oral Health?
Our mouths are little ecosystems operating in a delicate balance. If you change one part of the ecosystem, it affects the entire thing.
With orthodontic treatment, these changes are positive. If your dentist or orthodontist deems you a good candidate for braces or clear aligners, then yes — they’ll probably improve your oral health. Let’s unpack why.
What Can Orthodontic Treatment Improve?
Clear aligners and braces straighten your teeth and align your bite, and these changes can have far-reaching influences. Here’s how.
Oral Hygiene
Straightening crooked teeth isn’t just an aesthetic decision; it can also make your smile much easier to clean.[ 1 ] Crooked teeth provide numerous hiding places for bacteria that even the most practiced brushers and flossers might fail to reach.
Though bacteria are the root of most dental problems, there are also good bacteria that help your body. If you let bad bacteria flourish, they can create cavities, cause gum recession, and even sometimes lead to tooth loss.[ 2 ]
Clear aligners and braces can both help you avoid these problems by straightening your teeth and giving them fewer places to hide. However, during your treatment, clear aligners make maintaining good oral hygiene much easier than with braces. You won’t have to brush and floss around bulky brackets and wires; you can simply remove your aligners.
Gingivitis and Periodontal Disease
As we’ve already mentioned, straight teeth are easier to keep clean than crooked ones. If plaque stays on your teeth for too long, it can turn into tartar, which solidifies and is so difficult to remove, you’ll need a deep cleaning from a dental hygienist.
Tartar can cause some real problems. If it sits near the gum line long enough, it can irritate the part of your gums surrounding the tooth (called gingiva).[ 2 ] Inflammation of the gingiva is called gingivitis, which manifests as swollen gums that easily bleed. Though gingivitis is very common, if left unaddressed, it can turn into periodontal disease, which has much more serious implications — like gum recession or tooth loss.
Since straightening your teeth makes it easier to reach bacteria with your toothbrush and floss, this could potentially save you from larger problems down the line.
Gum Recession
Your gums are delicate — numerous behaviors can cause them to recede, and once they do, they won’t grow back. The good news is that orthodontic treatment helps eliminate many of the issues that lead to gum recession.
Many causes of gum recession stem from the uneven wear and abrasion that a misaligned bite can cause.[ 3 ] When you have a properly aligned bite, all the teeth are working together when you chew. If your bite is misaligned, that isn’t the case — which can put a lot of pressure on a few key teeth. This overuse and stress can cause the gums to recede.
Aligning your bite with braces or clear aligners distributes the work of chewing in a more balanced way, saving those few teeth from undue stress and uneven wear.
Bruxism
Bruxism is the chronic grinding and/or clenching of teeth4, and people can do it either consciously or unconsciously. When you grind your teeth overnight (sleep bruxism) you may not even realize you are doing it. That constant wear can wreak havoc on your teeth, sometimes causing premature enamel degradation or gum recession — both of which can require invasive (and expensive) procedures down the line.[ 4 ]
To treat bruxism, dentists and orthodontists often recommend a night guard. When you wear it overnight, this durable piece of plastic prevents your teeth from grinding against each other. It provides a cushion-like barrier that gives the muscles and jaw a much-needed break.
When you undergo clear aligner treatment, you’ll be wearing aligners for 22 hours a day, which doesn’t leave much time for teeth grinding. If you get braces, they’ll stay affixed to your teeth until treatment is complete. It’s possible to wear a night guard with braces, but it all depends on the type of braces and the style of guard. Ask your orthodontist if a night guard will work for you, and they can point you toward a safe, effective option.
When you finish treatment, you’ll need to wear an overnight retainer indefinitely to ensure your teeth stay in their new positions. Fortunately for anyone dealing with bruxism, post-treatment retainers can provide similar relief to night guards. So while you are taking care of your new smile, you can also avoid the perils of bruxism. Two birds, one durable piece of plastic!
TMJ/TMD
The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) connects your jaw to your skull. This joint is responsible for opening and closing the jaws — so be sure to thank your TMJ for its hard work at your next meal.
TMJ refers to the joint itself, but TMJ has also become shorthand to describe disorders of that joint, which are technically referred to as TMD (temporomandibular disorder).[ 5 ] Both are understood in the medical community, although TMD is technically the correct term for jaw joint pain.
TMD has several causes. Orthodontic treatment can help relieve TMD cases that stem from bruxism or misalignment. A misaligned bite can put too much pressure on certain areas of the jaw, potentially resulting in TMD.[ 5 ] Bruxism is another common cause, but we’ve already established clear aligners and braces can handle it.
Can Clear Aligners Cause Any Oral Health Problems?
There is no real evidence showing that clear aligners and braces create any oral health problems. This is, of course, if you follow the correct care and hygiene recommendations. If you never clean your aligner trays or don’t carefully clean around your braces, chances are you’ll run into some issues. Teeth straightening treatment isn’t a substitute for oral hygiene.
Straightening teeth is likely to cause some soreness, but that’s not necessarily a cause for concern. If anything, it means that treatment is working and your teeth are on their way to their new locations.
Whenever you shift your teeth, there’s a tiny risk of nerve damage. If this happens, the nerve might die, requiring a root canal. It’s extremely rare, but it’s still a possibility. A root canal is a simple procedure that only takes about an hour, depending on the tooth’s location.
If you get braces, you might also notice swollen gums, which can mean a variety of things. In many cases, it simply means your treatment is working and your gums are responding to all the movement under the surface by becoming swollen. But you should still tell your orthodontist if you feel some swelling, since it can also be a sign of gingivitis.
You might also experience some cheek and gum irritation as you get used to your braces brackets or aligner trays, but this typically fades pretty quickly. It isn’t a sign of a larger oral health issue; it is a response that will subside once your mouth grows accustomed to your appliances.
How Else Can I Improve My Oral Health?
Oral health doesn’t revolve entirely around orthodontic treatment. It’s a multifaceted endeavor, and one that you can improve through routine practices. Here are a few ways to improve or maintain your oral health.
Prioritize Nutrition
The balance of good and bad bacteria in your mouth has so much to do with your diet. The main culprit throwing off that balance is added sugar. We aren’t talking about naturally occurring sugars, so don’t avoid fruits. Added sugar intake, however, can actually be a better predictor of potential cavities than even brushing and flossing habits — the pillars of oral health routines.
If you want to improve your oral health, cut out added sugar. Ditch the soda for green tea, the sugary cereal for oatmeal, and the fruit snacks for fruit. Taking sugar out of the equation gives you the best chance at avoiding cavities.
Focus on Mental Health
Stress and mental health issues can eventually manifest themselves in physical ways, too.[ 6 ] They can even have adverse effects on your oral health. Bruxism can occur as a response to stress or anxiety, sometimes without you even realizing it. We know it’s easier said than done, but de-stressing can vastly improve both your physical and mental health.
Mental health is a lifelong project that isn’t easily fixed by an article about orthodontic treatment, but a couple of small changes can be a good place to start de-stressing. Consider keeping a journal, going for a walk, or even talking to a friend or counselor to lower your stress levels.
Schedule Regular Dentist Visits
Visiting the dentist twice a year is an important part of your oral health. Not only can deep cleaning help you avoid cavities, but regular trips to the dentist can address any problems you experience before they get out of control.
Gum recession, for example, begins so gradually that it’s hard for the untrained eye to notice. Keeping twice-yearly dental appointments helps catch these issues in their early stages, while you still have time to take preventative measures. If you avoid the dentist because of cost, consider searching for dental schools in your area. These institutions provide discounted or free dental treatments by students, all safely monitored by licensed dentists.
Stop Using Tobacco and Tobaccoless Products
We all know that using cigarettes, smokeless tobacco products, and vaping has repercussions for our overall health.[ 7 ],[ 8 ] What you might not know is that it can specifically harm your oral health.
From staining and weakening the teeth to increasing the risk of oral cancers, tobacco of any kind takes a toll on your mouth. If you regularly use tobacco products, now is the time to work on quitting.
Retainer Wear
Consistently wearing your retainers after orthodontic treatment is critical. Your overnight retainers will help your teeth keep their new, properly aligned positions, preventing misalignments from returning.
Final Thoughts
Orthodontic treatment can do more than just transform your smile — they can also improve your oral health and save you from invasive treatments and expensive complications down the line. It even makes it easier to clean your teeth!
If you’ve been wanting to straighten your teeth and oral health is on your mind, then orthodontic treatment might be just the way to get the healthy smile you’ve been waiting for.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is tooth damage permanent?
Enamel damage and gum recession are both permanent. This is why regular dentist appointments are so important; you can correct these issues as soon as possible.
Isn’t straightening my teeth just an aesthetic decision?
Orthodontic treatment is often framed as a purely cosmetic pursuit, but that isn’t always the case! Misaligned teeth have the potential to cause major health problems down the road, like premature enamel wear, gum recession, and even tooth loss.1 Consider the aesthetically pleasing nature of straight teeth just an additional perk of tending to your oral health.
What is the most important change I could make to improve my oral health?
Giving up added sugars. Added sugars are the best possible gift you could give to the bad bacteria in your mouth. They are the number one predictor of cavities, even beyond brushing and flossing habits.
Is it easier to keep my gums healthy during treatment with braces or clear aligners?
Aligning your teeth provides you with healthier gums in the long run, no matter which treatment you use. During treatment, however, it’s much easier to maintain healthy gums and good oral hygiene with clear aligners than braces. That’s because aligners are removable, while braces maintenance requires a higher level of care since they’re affixed to your teeth.
Which is more comfortable: clear aligners or braces?
It mostly comes down to personal preference, but typically, people find clear aligners more comfortable than braces. The metal wires and brackets can be more abrasive than the comparatively smooth texture of a clear aligner.
How do I know if I have gingivitis?
In some cases, gingivitis doesn’t have many symptoms, and other times, it presents itself as swollen gums that bleed easily. It can be hard to know if inflamed gums are from braces themselves or from something more problematic — like gingivitis. That’s why it’s important to continue your regular dentist appointments throughout your braces treatment. They’ll notice and address any issues in the early stages before they can get worse.
Can I drink while wearing aligners?
You can drink water, but that’s it. You’ll take your aligners out for mealtimes, which includes any drinks that aren’t water. You’ll then need to brush your teeth and floss before putting your aligners back in.
How do you floss with braces?
It’s a little complicated to floss with braces since the archwire connecting your teeth is in the way. You’ll need to thread the floss behind the archwire in between each tooth. There are tools that can aid in this process.
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