Beauty is an art that comprises different elements. An overall beautiful and attractive face goes beyond smooth skin, pointed nose, clean complexion, and so on. A nicely done make-over with a neat haircut/ hairdo will best be complemented with a white and straight set of teeth shaped into a perfect smile. 

Smiling has good effects not only on your physical outlook but also helps you to feel better. According to a poll conducted by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, an impressive 99.7% of people sampled agreed that a good smile is a valuable asset that helps your relation in society. In the same vein, 85% believe that an unattractive smile would make one look less appealing. The most shocking opinion is that 74% of the respondents believe that the people who smile less attractively would probably miss career opportunities at one point or the other. 

On this point, it is agreeable that having a perfect smile is something everyone should work towards for improved self-confidence and the overall physical outlook. Fortunately, imperfect smiles can be fixed. Technology has significantly improved over the years, and now, everyone can get the flaws in their smiles correctly. Here are five ways you can straighten teeth for a perfect smile.

Visit Your Dentist 

In most cases, you’ll need to visit your dentist to get and maintain the perfect smile. There are cosmetic dentists who are thoroughly trained and specially equipped with skills to create something beautiful and bring out the perfection in your smile.  You may need to look carefully if you don’t already have the right dentist.

They can help you to restore broken or slightly broken tooth or teeth. They can fix cracked or crooked teeth as well. If you have discolored teeth or you are not satisfied with the level of whiteness of your teeth, a cosmetic surgeon will help you to whiten them, giving you the perfect smile you desire. Visiting your dentist regularly helps you maintain a healthy smile and teeth, leaving them well arranged and shaped, clean and strong.

Find The Best Option To Straighten Your Teeth

After seeing the need for a perfect smile and deciding to visit a dentist, many people are often worried about the time or how long it would take for them to get their desired dream smile. However, there is necessarily no specific answer to this question. The time it would take will depend on many variables, putting the uniqueness of each individual’s mouth into consideration.  There is also new technology in orthodontics, which can play a role.

There are also many options and techniques that can be used to achieve the desired result. The dentist will recommend the best option based on your needs, preferences, and budget. Some of the options that can be used include: 

• Invisalign: This is an option that adults often prefer. It entails using plastics that are well designed to suit your teeth and align and straighten them appropriately. Your dentist measures your teeth, and designs aligners for teeth straightening that would suit your needs. 

The aligners are made from transparent plastics and are hardly visible by others, and so you don’t feel conscious about putting them on. Twice every month, these custom aligners are changed to suit the current status of the teeth and are repeated till your teeth are well straightened. Usually, it takes about 12months, but the actual duration varies from one individual to another. 

• Metal Braces: This has been a go-to option for many. It involved the use of metal braces- ligature elastic, brackets, archwire, and bonding material. This option may take a longer time, from about five months to few years, depending on the severity of the condition. It is, however, cheaper compared to other methods of straightening teeth.

• Accelerated Orthodontics: Accelerated Orthodontics, as the name implies, helps to reduce the time taken for a treatment option to produce the desired effect. Usually, an additional procedure is added to the use of metal braces to cut short and minimize the time it will take to achieve a better teeth alignment and straightening. 

Some of these technologies add moderate pressure to the teeth in combination with the pressure asserted by the braces. This ensures the quick straightening of the teeth and reduces the required time to nearly half. 

Be Careful What You Eat and Drink

As much as there are options and procedures that can remove imperfections from your teeth and make your smiles flawless, there are measures you should take personally to ensure a good health condition for your teeth. One of such is being careful of the foods you eat and drinks you take. 

Usually, highly pressured and sweetened foods can demineralize your enamel. When you take too many sweetened foods like soft drinks, candies, etc., they form acid on your teeth, and when bacteria act on them, they start to break down the enamel, creating holes in the teeth, otherwise known as dental caries. This is why it’s important to watch the kind of foods and drink you take to prevent damage to the teeth. 

Brush Your Teeth Twice A Day

The benefits of brushing well and twice daily cannot be overemphasized. Plaques are a film of bacteria that adhere to the surface of the teeth if not brushed properly. They have to be removed, and that is why you should brush your teeth twice daily. Take about two minutes in the morning and night to brush your teeth with fluoride toothpaste to ensure clean and healthy oral hygiene. 

When brushing, make sure you brush all parts of the teeth. Brush the inside surfaces, outside and chewing surfaces of the teeth to ensure that you reach all parts. Doing this will help you maintain that perfect smile. 

Make Flossing A Habit and Use The Right Technique

To remove the plaques earlier discussed, brushing would not be enough as the bristles might not penetrate the spaces between the teeth. The teeth are usually tightly packed with tiny spaces that only dental floss can penetrate. Ensure to use dental floss every day and make it a habit. You can follow the steps below while flossing:

• Roll the floss around a finger of both hands and ensure it is taut.
• Let the floss move between your teeth in a sawing motion very gently. 
• When the floss starts touching the gym line, make a C shape against one tooth and slide it between the gum and the tooth. 
• Hold it tightly against the tooth and move the floss away from the gum with up and down motions while rubbing the tooth.
• Repeat this procedure for the other teeth

Conclusion

Having healthy teeth and shaping them into a perfect time is a course that is definitely worth your energy and attention. Proper hygiene procedures like brushing twice daily, flossing regularly, and eating healthy meals would get you healthy teeth. Ensure you visit your dentist regularly to get professional advice and personalized care and treatment for your teeth.