If you want to straighten your teeth but don’t want the appearance of metal mouth, the good news is traditional metal braces are not the only option. If esthetics are a concern, or if you don’t want to deal with brackets and wires, there are options for you! Lingual braces, ceramic braces and clear aligners are cosmetic alternatives to traditional braces. As with any treatment, there are pros and cons of each kind.
Lingual braces
Lingual braces are composed of brackets and wires, just like conventional braces. The main difference between lingual braces and traditional braces is that lingual braces are placed on the back side of your teeth. In this way, since they are on the back, they don’t show when you smile. These tend to be custom-made per patient and therefore more expensive. Additionally, some patients find them uncomfortable on the tongue and hard to keep clean. But if you don’t want to show brackets, these will work and be just as efficient as traditional braces.
Ceramic Braces
Ceramic Braces are also composed of brackets and wires, but the brackets are white and not metal. The white brackets are made of ceramic material. The concept with ceramic braces is that they are supposed to camouflage with the rest of your teeth. However, they do stain over time so you will have to avoid drinks and food that easily stain. Additionally, since they are made of ceramic material, they tend to be fragile and are easy to break. Avoiding sticky and crunchy foods will be critical in order to prevent fracturing the brackets. For this reason, they are considered high maintenance and tend to be more expensive. But orthodontically, they work just the same and efficiently as traditional brackets.
Clear Aligners
Clear aligners are composed of clear trays that you can take in and out. They are virtually invisible. Since there are no brackets involved then you can easily eat any food you want and don’t have to avoid crunchy or sticky foods (within reason, of course!). Compliance is a major factor with clear aligners: you have to wear them for the prescribed amount of time otherwise your treatment will get delayed! Also, if your case is more severe, you will have more efficient treatment with traditional braces rather than clear aligners.