Have you ever seen an adult with braces? If you have, chances are you can think of that person immediately because their braces stood out at their age. On the other hand, if you’ve ever seen a kid wearing orthodontic gear that’s visible, you’ll likely remember that, too.

Our society has associated orthodontic care with teenagers, and for good reason. It’s almost a rite of passage for many teens, a normal part of the teenage years. But that doesn’t mean that orthodontic care is pointless for children or adults. Far from it! At Orthodontic Alliances in Northwest Indiana, Dr. Schmidt offers care for all ages, because we believe that everyone deserves a straight, healthy, and beautiful smile!

Orthodontics for Kids

Before you think that we will just put braces on your child’s baby teeth, read on! Orthodontic care is more than just braces. With our preventive orthodontics, interceptive orthodontics, and facial orthopedics, we can help prevent your child from needing braces for as long, or even altogether, in many cases. You don’t need to wait until a problem arises. Our orthodontics for kids as early as age 7 can accomplish a great smile with less time, less money, and less stress:

  • making sure baby teeth are lost at the right time for adult teeth to come in properly
  • correcting habits, such as thumb sucking, that affect bite
  • making sure permanent teeth come in correctly

A few treatments we do all the time to help this include:

  • space maintainers: increase or maintain space for permanent teeth to have the room they need to grow in properly
  • early extractions: recommended when your child’s mouth is too crowded for their adult teeth to fit
  • thumb sucking appliance: encourages your child to stop sucking their thumb or fingers, a habit that can change their bite for the worse
  • eruption appliances: worn after baby teeth fall out to help guide their adult into the right place

Braces for Teens

Braces are popular for teenagers (or children starting around age 12) because at that point, most of their adult teeth have grown in. Also, their jaw is still developing, making it more responsive to treatment.

We have many options for teens needing braces, from simple cases to the most complex. Most teens get traditional wire braces, which straighten teeth and correct bite issues using the pressure from metal brackets and wires. Today’s braces are much more comfortable than those you might have seen kids wearing when you were younger. Even so, we do our best to make sure your teen’s treatments are as comfortable as possible.

Some of the things our teenage patients have told us they love about getting braces here include:

  • colored braces: Mix them up! Choose your favorite color, your sports team’s colors, or even holiday colors!
  • no headgear: We can use other options to help your child’s bite.
  • invisible retainers: After your teen gets their braces off, we can provide clear retainers that won’t make them self-conscious.

Adults

Are you too old for braces? It’s been estimated that around 20 percent of people wear braces as adults. As long as you have teeth and a healthy bone structure underneath, it’s not too late for you to get that straight smile you’ve always wanted! And if more people knew of the options adults have at Orthodontic Alliances, they might think twice before dismissing braces altogether.

We take all of your hesitations about braces into consideration for treatments:

  • Braces will make me look immature – they’re associated with teens!
  • Braces are too noticeable and will distract from my appearance!
  • Braces take too long to complete treatment!
  • Braces hurt!
  • Braces are inconvenient in terms of time spent cleaning and diet restrictions!

That’s why we offer the following adult braces options, which address different problems:

  • Invisalign: These nearly invisible aligners will straighten your teeth without anyone noticing! Plus, they’re comfortable, removable, and take less time to complete than traditional braces. They’re about the same cost, too.
  • Clear ceramic brackets: These clear brackets match your teeth, so you don’t have to have all that metal showing when you smile or talk.
  • Fast Acting Adult Braces (FAAB): These cosmetic braces focus on the social six, or the six front teeth that show when you smile. If it’s just these six teeth that are preventing your smile from being beautiful, let us help! We can even use clear ceramic braces to keep them from being as noticeable and hidden retainers after they come off. The best part: it takes only six months or less!

When you come in for a consultation, we’ll be able to provide a thorough examination to get the information we need about your bite or your child’s bite. We can then help determine which options will give you the best smile possible. contact_us text=”Contact us”] today for straight, beautiful teeth, no matter your age!