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[quote=Anonymous]I’m no expert, but here’s my limited experience.

Because my mom went through braces in her youth in the 50s/60s and had a truly hideous experience, she was determined to keep me out of braces if at all possible.  I had to have a couple of teeth pulled, but otherwise my teeth were relatively straight, although I had an overbite.  It looked like everything was working out, until my jaw started popping, which was diagnosed as TMJ. I had increasing pain, wore braces in college that were supposed to fix the problem, but didn’t. I eventually needed jaw surgery.

I was bound and determined to do everything possible to avoid TMJ for my kids.  They had a round of braces with a palatal expander and then later a round in high school, without the expander.  They have been spared any problems with TMJ, but it’s impossible to know if orthodontia played any part in that.  What I do know from talking to them, is that the braces weren’t nearly as bad for them as kids whose mouths were still forming as it was for me as an adult whose mouth was fully developed.

I have no idea if your kids need a palatal expander.  I would encourage you to get a second orthodontic opinion, or even a third, if you’re not sure. Consult your child’s dentist, your dentist, maybe their pediatrician. Talk to whatever experts you think you need to.  But if they do need orthodontia, I think it’s much better to do it early while it’s easier to move the teeth around and before other problems develop.

Incidentally, one of my kids was underweight to the point they had to go to a gastroenterologist.  The braces and palatal expander were not the problem and if they had any effect on the weight at all, it was negligible. [/quote]

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