Having braces is an "in" thing these days????

[Disney1fan2002]

My DD has a little friend who had braces, and just had them removed. Now all my DD talks about is braces. She wants to buy the stickers you put on American Girl dolls so they have braces, she keeps asking me if her teeth that are growing in look crooked.

she is in 2nd grade. (BTW, does it seems kids are getting braces at a MUCH younger age?)

In my day, the poor kid who had braces was not treated very well. Now it seems like the kids who have braces are envied. Or is my DD the only weird one?

 

[Maleficent13]

Kids always want what their friends have, not matter what it is. Especially at that age.

Re: the age thing...I didn't even start loosing my baby teeth until 2nd grade! How can a 2nd grade have braces?

 

[allie&mattsmom]

No, your daughter is definitely not the only one. My DD will be getting hers on sometime this month. When she was in the 2nd grade she had her palate expander put in and since then she's been in a "holding" pattern, just waiting till most of her baby teeth are out.

And yes! They are getting them soooo young now a days. 2nd graders with braces?! It was usually late grade school/early high school that kids got them when I was growing up.

Oh, and confession here. I was one of those kids that wanted braces (or even a retainer) but never needed them. Now, at 41 years of age, I had to get a retainer for my bottom teeth because they started to move a bit. I only have to wear it at night but will need to forever. I hate it!

 

[bananiem]

Braces were cool when I had them in 7th and 8th grade in the late 70's.
My son had braces on his top teeth for about 18 months in 3rd grade and got them off this winter in 4th grade. It was to fix his cross bite. It is easier to fix it when they are younger and their jaw is still growing, rather than waiting. Remember the kids that wore braces for 5 years? Now they do a 2 step process. They've fixed the "abnormality" in my son's mouth and when he loses all his baby teeth they'll worry about straightening them.

 

[Crankyshank]

braces were really in when I was in the 5th grade - we used to put lollipop sticks around our teeth so they would look braces so it's definitely not a new thing

 

[LindaR]

I don't know if its the "in" thing. Braces don't have the stigma that they used to. They are also a little smaller, have a rainbow of colors for the "O's" that go on the brackets so the kids can personalize their look (or have season appropriate colors). I know that there are some kids that have braces at a young age because they have major alignment problems. The rule of thumb is that braces are not put on until their last adult tooth has come in because really, you are fixing the adult teeth that will last for the rest of their lives.
It's a good thing that braces are not feared so much theses days. Makes it easier for the parents and the kid who needs them!

BTW, today is dd17's four year anniversary with her braces on. Her ortho didn't do such a hot job (she was not happy with the alignment) and she got to start all over again last year.

 

[Wonderlandmom]

What bothers me are the kids getting them that DON'T need them. I have a relative whose son had what looked like nice perfect teeth to me. The dentist and orthodontist said he did not need braces. The mother had them put on him as "perfection is expected" in today's society!! I thought they looked perfect. I just don't care for her attitude as she expects him to be perfect in every single way.

I don't know why so many 2nd graders have braces either. My kids lost their first tooth in 2nd grade. Some are due to extreme problems I guess and many will have to get braces again.

I had braces and did NOT want them. So far my DS's are ok, but I know things can change. Verdict still out on DD.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

The thing about braces being the "in" thing is that if your teeth are messed up it is better to have braces than messed up teeth.

My older dd has braces and my younger dd is going to the ortho next week to get looked at.

 

[mickeyfan2]

I got my braces at 13 and that was late for most of my school. Nobody got made fun of for braces since more kids had them then did not.

I think the theory for early braces is to move the tooth when it is coming in into is correct spot rather than let it go to the wrong place and move it later. I tend to agree with this theory.

 

[golfgal]

What bothers me are the kids getting them that DON'T need them. I have a relative whose son had what looked like nice perfect teeth to me. The dentist and orthodontist said he did not need braces. The mother had them put on him as "perfection is expected" in today's society!! I thought they looked perfect. I just don't care for her attitude as she expects him to be perfect in every single way.

I don't know why so many 2nd graders have braces either. My kids lost their first tooth in 2nd grade. Some are due to extreme problems I guess and many will have to get braces again.

I had braces and did NOT want them. So far my DS's are ok, but I know things can change. Verdict still out on DD.

Don't be so sure that he didn't need them. My DS13's teeth look straight and they are but his problem is his bite, his teeth did not meet up right and his front teeth were tipped back toward his mouth. He got braces last June to fix these problems. I am amazed at how their teeth move around in their mouth. He had a gap between his front teeth, got a new rubber band put on at 10:00 one morning and by 3:00 that afternoon the gap was closed.

 

[gypsydoodlebug]

She can have mine. I turned 30 and got braces this year. Not cool. And there's not a day goes by that I don't wish they were off of my teeth. I better look like a movie star in 2.5 years.

 

[SC Minnie]

very few kids had braces when I got mine in 1980. There wasn't even an ortho in our town, we had to drive an hour to get to him. One came about 2 years later.

DD just got hers on in Feb and she is in 6th grade- the same age I was. The ones I had were the metal bands that went all around the tooth. Not a pretty site. DD needed them for crowding on the bottem and she is missing 2 teeth on the top so they have to space her other teeth so they can put in implants. This child is costing me waaaayyyy too much $$$$.

Now braces are almost seen as a status symbol or something. DD said there are only 2 kids in her class of 20 without braces.

 

[lsyorke]

I had friends who had braces on their kids by age 5. They keep insisted that I have DS checked(teeth coming in were crooked). No way was I putting braces on a growing mouth. Surprise.. once all the second teeth were in, perfectly straight, perfect bite. Give teeth time to do what they've been doing for thousands of years without help!

 

[ckay87]

Do you think it's more of a badge of growing up. Like, "hey, I'm old enough to need braces."

 

[bananiem]

Surprise.. once all the second teeth were in, perfectly straight, perfect bite. Give teeth time to do what they've been doing for thousands of years without help!

That doesn't happen for all kids.
When the dentist and your second opinion say your son is going to look like Popeye because his cross-bite is so bad and he'll have TMJ problems if you don't fix it, you tend to want to fix it no matter what their age.

 

[Becky2005]

Remember the kids that wore braces for 5 years? Now they do a 2 step process. They've fixed the "abnormality" in my son's mouth and when he loses all his baby teeth they'll worry about straightening them.

That's somewhat what my daughter is having done! She's like me in late losing baby teeth! LOL! She's 12 and when we went to the orthodontist during the X-ray she still has 11 baby teeth that need to fall out.

She has top braces now for several reasons (one being she had a tooth in perpendicular - I had no idea teeth could even DO that!) plus needed more room.

She will have those on and then will wear a retainer during the "rest" period - basically I think to when all her baby teeth fall out. Then gets to have them on both top & bottom to finish off the process.

She was so excited to get hers but that's because she had been needing them for a while, we were just waiting for the dentist to do the "yep, it's time to go see the orthodontist". She just wanted that crooked tooth FIXED it was bugging her something fierce.

 

[bananiem]

She has top braces now for several reasons (one being she had a tooth in perpendicular - I had no idea teeth could even DO that!) plus needed more room.

My nephew had one of his front top teeth perpendicular in the gum. It wouldn't have come down on it's own. His smile looks so nice now! Amazing what they can do, isn't it?

 

[mickeyfan2]

I worked with a women whose two kids front teeth never came down. They put bands on them in the gum with a wire our of gum and pulled them into place. They came down very quickly.

 

[mylilnikita]

My DD's 2nd grade classmate just had some sort of braces on, which I can't figure that one out. Which in the same week, my DD had to have a space maintainer put on her lower teeth. So she didn't feel alone in getting something done to her teeth. Then when she gets around 12 she will get braces. And I never needed any work done like that, but she inherited her daddy's teeth.

 

[HugsForEeyore]

What bothers me are the kids getting them that DON'T need them. I have a relative whose son had what looked like nice perfect teeth to me. The dentist and orthodontist said he did not need braces. The mother had them put on him as "perfection is expected" in today's society!! I thought they looked perfect. I just don't care for her attitude as she expects him to be perfect in every single way.

I don't know why so many 2nd graders have braces either. My kids lost their first tooth in 2nd grade. Some are due to extreme problems I guess and many will have to get braces again.

I had braces and did NOT want them. So far my DS's are ok, but I know things can change. Verdict still out on DD.

This level of perfection is rampant around here, too! In my area, the prevailing attitude is that if you DON'T brace your 6 year old, you are a bad parent and dooming your child's life to flipping burgers as an member of the underclass!! (Yes, I am being sarcastic!!) But that is the "unsaid" attitude about braces. Around here, most parents have to start fixing their kid's teeth young, or others will look at your child's crooked teeth and think you are a bad parent (even if the ortho wants you to wait). It's all about status, class, and appearances. Those who look better are admired and treated better, and straight teeth are a huge part of that. And poor kids are more likely to not afford braces and grow up with crooked teeth.

And yes, some kids have serious ortho problems at young ages that need correction, but for most it's just about appearances. Parents want their kids to look perfect - why let your kid have crooked teeth for a few years and then fix it? Doing braces in stages guarentees their teeth will look better as they grow.

I know plenty of kids with an orthodontic appliance in their mouths by age 7. And I wonder if the kids themselves pick up on the fact that kids in braces have been "chosen" to be perfect? And maybe the crooked tooth kid who is waiting until they are 12 to start braces may realize they are not "special" and wants braces to feel part of the "chosen" crowd??? Who knows!

I am an adult in braces for over three years now, so I know alot about the subject. But if I had kids, they would be braced the second their adult teeth come in!!!! No way would I let them have crooked teeth for a few years and then do braces. In many areas, early braces are the accepted way to go nowadays.