Uncanny after braces?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's because their teeth are perfect but their faces are not.

NP. This is the answer. Perfect teeth are due to good nutrition. That has other effects on the face. When you have an unattractive kid who is chubby with bad skin and poor bone structure, it’s obvious that they had braces to get perfect teeth. On other people, the same teeth would blend in and look fine.

Lol, this is not true. Crooked teeth have nothing to do with nutrition. It's genetics and luck.

Now how your teeth are can be very related to nutrition. But no, bad nutrition won't cause and overbite or overlapping teeth, and good nutrition won't prevent it.

Yeah that PP took it in a weeks direction.

A better way to say it is " "Their teeth are [b/]artificially modified[b] but the rest of their face is not."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's because their teeth are perfect but their faces are not.

NP. This is the answer. Perfect teeth are due to good nutrition. That has other effects on the face. When you have an unattractive kid who is chubby with bad skin and poor bone structure, it’s obvious that they had braces to get perfect teeth. On other people, the same teeth would blend in and look fine.

Lol, this is not true. Crooked teeth have nothing to do with nutrition. It's genetics and luck.

Now how your teeth are can be very related to nutrition. But no, bad nutrition won't cause and overbite or overlapping teeth, and good nutrition won't prevent it.

Yeah that PP took it in a weeks direction.

A better way to say it is " "Their teeth are artificially modified but the rest of their face is not."

Similar effect when an asymmetrical face person with no makeup wears a gorgeous dress

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

My kid had a palate expander at 7 yo and is now 9 yo, and hasn't yet had braces and does have this look. Her smile looks wide and flat (while still being a bit crooked pre-braces). She needed the expander to make room in a very crowded mouth, but it did change her appearance. She'll do braces once her baby teeth are out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

My kid had a palate expander at 7 yo and is now 9 yo, and hasn't yet had braces and does have this look. Her smile looks wide and flat (while still being a bit crooked pre-braces). She needed the expander to make room in a very crowded mouth, but it did change her appearance. She'll do braces once her baby teeth are out.

I have to say a wide smile with lots of teeth is better than the options we had a gen x where they just pulled teeth and put on braces and we ended up with smaller mouth/witchy mouth

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

If the orthos are doing it on purpose because they think it looks good, why wouldn't they advertise it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

My kid had a palate expander at 7 yo and is now 9 yo, and hasn't yet had braces and does have this look. Her smile looks wide and flat (while still being a bit crooked pre-braces). She needed the expander to make room in a very crowded mouth, but it did change her appearance. She'll do braces once her baby teeth are out.

I have to say a wide smile with lots of teeth is better than the options we had a gen x where they just pulled teeth and put on braces and we ended up with smaller mouth/witchy mouth

I'm the PP whose kid had a removable expander. Maybe the ortho did something different than others, but her mouth doesn't look overwide now (though it is over gappy until more big teeth come in). It now just fits her face where before it was - as you say PP - "witchy" and overly pinched in the jaw area.

Maybe it's kid dependent whether the big expansion works?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

My kid had a palate expander at 7 yo and is now 9 yo, and hasn't yet had braces and does have this look. Her smile looks wide and flat (while still being a bit crooked pre-braces). She needed the expander to make room in a very crowded mouth, but it did change her appearance. She'll do braces once her baby teeth are out.

I have to say a wide smile with lots of teeth is better than the options we had a gen x where they just pulled teeth and put on braces and we ended up with smaller mouth/witchy mouth

I don't like either look!

I did braces as an adult, no extractions, no filing, no expander. It straightened my teeth out and partially but didn't fully correct my overbite, which was fine with me. I spoke to 5 orthodontists before finding one who would work with me. A lot of orthodontists are quacks who will try to convince you that if you don't do their full plan (which unsurprisingly requires the most work and costs the most money) somehow it will ruin your life. But as an adult who had been living with some crooked teeth and an overbite for decades, I knew that wasn't the case.

I don't need jaw surgery. My orthodontia didn't change the shape of my head. I have a symmetrical smile with straight teeth, and straightening them also made dental care easier (flossing even teeth is just more effective). But my mouth isn't "perfect" which is fine because I'm a human being, not a mannequin. Don't let this greedy jerks talk you into essentially torturing your child to create some kind of ideal mouth and dentition that your kid wasn't born with. I was looking for a good natural bite that was comfortable and effective, and some aesthetic improvement so I wouldn't be self-conscious about my teeth in photos. That's all most people need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

If the orthos are doing it on purpose because they think it looks good, why wouldn't they advertise it?

They are doing it on purpose because it makes them more money. And then they convince themselves it's essential. A lot of orthodontia is this way. So is a lot of dentistry, both essential and cosmetic. Dentistry/orthodontia is a racket.

Same thing with the two stage braces and all the 7 yr olds in braces suddenly. I think they are basically preying on people who start getting nervous when their kids have typical gappy smiles at this age. It's an awkward age where kids have a mix of adult and baby teeth, gaps that can take a bit to fill in, plus when you see teeth come in at this stage, if they are crooked at all, it *really* stands out because they may be coming in next to a gap or next to a tiny baby tooth and it just looks weird. Parents start to worry "oh no my kid has horrible teeth" and now suddenly the standard recommendation is an orthodontist consult at 7.5 and, oh surprise, now orthos regularly recommend kids get an initial round of braces at 7 or 8.

Here's a secret: teeth can straighten themselves out a bit on their own during this phase. A tooth can descend at an angle and then straighten out a surprising amount as it fully comes into place, especially as other adult teeth move into place on either side of it. So some of the straightening that you see happen quickly and easily during "round 1" braces? Could actually happen without braces. Kids teeth are super mobile during this stage and there's often lots of shifting. Unless your kid has shark teeth (that last more than a short period, even shark teeth can sort themselves out once the baby tooth falls out), true crowding, or major jaw issues, you will be surprised at how much better their smile will look at age 9 than it did at age 7, just as a result of their adult dentition coming into place.

They may still need braces, or you might just want to get them for aesthetic reasons, but a lot of what you don't like about your kid's smile at 7 is just the reality of the age. I think a lot of orthos just prey on parent fears. It's ridiculous, especially in this era when a lot of families are increasingly stressed about finances, between inflation and rising college costs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

My kid had a palate expander at 7 yo and is now 9 yo, and hasn't yet had braces and does have this look. Her smile looks wide and flat (while still being a bit crooked pre-braces). She needed the expander to make room in a very crowded mouth, but it did change her appearance. She'll do braces once her baby teeth are out.

I have to say a wide smile with lots of teeth is better than the options we had a gen x where they just pulled teeth and put on braces and we ended up with smaller mouth/witchy mouth

I don't like either look!

I did braces as an adult, no extractions, no filing, no expander. It straightened my teeth out and partially but didn't fully correct my overbite, which was fine with me. I spoke to 5 orthodontists before finding one who would work with me. A lot of orthodontists are quacks who will try to convince you that if you don't do their full plan (which unsurprisingly requires the most work and costs the most money) somehow it will ruin your life. But as an adult who had been living with some crooked teeth and an overbite for decades, I knew that wasn't the case.

I don't need jaw surgery. My orthodontia didn't change the shape of my head. I have a symmetrical smile with straight teeth, and straightening them also made dental care easier (flossing even teeth is just more effective). But my mouth isn't "perfect" which is fine because I'm a human being, not a mannequin. Don't let this greedy jerks talk you into essentially torturing your child to create some kind of ideal mouth and dentition that your kid wasn't born with. I was looking for a good natural bite that was comfortable and effective, and some aesthetic improvement so I wouldn't be self-conscious about my teeth in photos. That's all most people need.

Not to be insulting but the point of expander/changing head shape etc. is because orthodontists do this whilst the child is growing as part of an overall plan. Adult orthodontia doesn't belong on this thread. Your head is the same shape it always was because you are done growing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s the palate expanders. Every braces-wearing Gen Alpha kid got a palate expander, sometimes for years, which creates a Wallace & Gromit smile (Google it). Orthodontists push kids palates so far out that they all have this same weird cartoon smile when the braces come off.

+1. Read the whole thread waiting for someone to say this. The palate expanders cause that look with the 4-6 front teeth straight across not curved around. It's hard to find an image of it (what Orthodontist would post photos like that?) but I know exactly what OP means. It's everywhere in tweens/teens today.

If the orthos are doing it on purpose because they think it looks good, why wouldn't they advertise it?

They are doing it on purpose because it makes them more money. And then they convince themselves it's essential. A lot of orthodontia is this way. So is a lot of dentistry, both essential and cosmetic. Dentistry/orthodontia is a racket.

Same thing with the two stage braces and all the 7 yr olds in braces suddenly. I think they are basically preying on people who start getting nervous when their kids have typical gappy smiles at this age. It's an awkward age where kids have a mix of adult and baby teeth, gaps that can take a bit to fill in, plus when you see teeth come in at this stage, if they are crooked at all, it *really* stands out because they may be coming in next to a gap or next to a tiny baby tooth and it just looks weird. Parents start to worry "oh no my kid has horrible teeth" and now suddenly the standard recommendation is an orthodontist consult at 7.5 and, oh surprise, now orthos regularly recommend kids get an initial round of braces at 7 or 8.

Here's a secret: teeth can straighten themselves out a bit on their own during this phase. A tooth can descend at an angle and then straighten out a surprising amount as it fully comes into place, especially as other adult teeth move into place on either side of it. So some of the straightening that you see happen quickly and easily during "round 1" braces? Could actually happen without braces. Kids teeth are super mobile during this stage and there's often lots of shifting. Unless your kid has shark teeth (that last more than a short period, even shark teeth can sort themselves out once the baby tooth falls out), true crowding, or major jaw issues, you will be surprised at how much better their smile will look at age 9 than it did at age 7, just as a result of their adult dentition coming into place.

They may still need braces, or you might just want to get them for aesthetic reasons, but a lot of what you don't like about your kid's smile at 7 is just the reality of the age. I think a lot of orthos just prey on parent fears. It's ridiculous, especially in this era when a lot of families are increasingly stressed about finances, between inflation and rising college costs.

Agree. Also adding it isn’t just a matter of adult teeth growing in- which in some kids (girls especially) can happen pretty early. But rather both having adult teeth all in AND being old enough to wear their face and jaw are closer to full size. The size of adult teeth don’t change and of course often look big and crowded on a 9 yr old face. But as the face and jaw grow the teeth gain room and often straighten on their own. The longer you wait for braces, the less time they will be on and the more natural the results will be. In most cases.

[Anonymous]

There’s a lot more to orthodontia than just straightening teeth. A narrow palate can cause undersized airways, cheek biting, mouth breathing, snoring, and sleep apnea. Soft diets, poor oral posture, and soft pillows are causing jaws to be more underdeveloped than in generations past, which can lead to jaw pain, TMJ, and a misaligned bite.

[Anonymous]

You're used to seeing the kids with less teeth showing. So of course it looks different to you. Like a person who has worn bangs forever, then suddenly pulls her hair back and you see a ton of forehead. It's startling and takes time to get used to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There’s a lot more to orthodontia than just straightening teeth. A narrow palate can cause undersized airways, cheek biting, mouth breathing, snoring, and sleep apnea. Soft diets, poor oral posture, and soft pillows are causing jaws to be more underdeveloped than in generations past, which can lead to jaw pain, TMJ, and a misaligned bite.

Then maybe health insurance should cover it?

Braces will always be a rich person thing. Also, retainers for life or they shift because the teeth aren’t in their natural position for your mouth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You're used to seeing the kids with less teeth showing. So of course it looks different to you. Like a person who has worn bangs forever, then suddenly pulls her hair back and you see a ton of forehead. It's startling and takes time to get used to.

Nah, I shouldn’t see your 2nd molar when you smile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s a lot more to orthodontia than just straightening teeth. A narrow palate can cause undersized airways, cheek biting, mouth breathing, snoring, and sleep apnea. Soft diets, poor oral posture, and soft pillows are causing jaws to be more underdeveloped than in generations past, which can lead to jaw pain, TMJ, and a misaligned bite.

Then maybe health insurance should cover it?

Good luck with that. Insurance companies think the ability to breathe is cosmetic.