Dental braces are orthodontic devices that use brackets, wires, and gentle pressure to gradually move teeth into better alignment. They work by triggering a natural biological process called bone remodeling, where the bone around each tooth breaks down on one side and rebuilds on the other, allowing the tooth to shift position over months or years.
How Braces Move Your Teeth
When a wire applies pressure to a tooth through a bracket, it creates compression on one side of the tooth’s root and tension on the opposite side. Your body responds by removing bone in the compressed area and depositing new bone in the area under tension. This cycle repeats with each adjustment, nudging teeth fraction by fraction into their target positions.
This is why braces require regular adjustment appointments, typically every four to eight weeks. At each visit, the orthodontist tightens or replaces the archwire to maintain steady pressure as your teeth shift. The process can’t be rushed without risking damage to the roots or surrounding bone, which is why treatment usually spans one to three years depending on the complexity of the case.
The Parts That Make Up Braces
Braces look like a single system, but they’re made of several components working together:
- Brackets are the small pieces bonded directly to each tooth with dental cement. Their job is to hold the archwire in a precise position against the tooth surface.
- Archwires are the thin metal wires threaded through the brackets. These are the parts that actually generate the force to move teeth.
- Ligatures (O-rings) are the tiny rubber bands that secure the archwire to each bracket. They come in different colors, which is why you’ll see kids (and adults) with colorful braces.
- Buccal tubes are small metal pieces attached to the back molars that anchor the ends of the archwire.
Some patients also wear rubber bands that hook between upper and lower brackets to correct bite alignment. These elastic bands add extra directional force that the archwire alone can’t provide.
What Braces Can Fix
Braces treat malocclusion, which is the clinical term for a misaligned bite. The specific problems they correct include:
- Crowding: teeth that overlap or twist because there isn’t enough room in the jaw.
- Overbite: upper teeth that overlap the lower teeth too deeply in a vertical direction.
- Underbite: lower front teeth that extend beyond the upper front teeth.
- Crossbite: upper teeth that sit inside the lower teeth when the mouth is closed, rather than outside them.
- Open bite: upper and lower front teeth that don’t touch when the mouth is closed, leaving a visible gap.
- Overjet: upper front teeth that protrude outward more than normal, sometimes called “buck teeth.”
The severity of the issue and your personal preferences both factor into which type of braces an orthodontist recommends.
Types of Braces
Traditional metal braces use stainless steel brackets and wires. They’re the most common type and tend to be the most effective for complex cases. Metal braces are also typically the least expensive option.
Ceramic braces work the same way but use tooth-colored or clear brackets that blend in more with your teeth. They’re less noticeable than metal but can stain over time, especially with coffee, tea, or dark-colored foods.
Lingual braces are bonded to the back surfaces of your teeth, making them invisible from the front. They can be harder to clean and may affect speech initially, so they’re less commonly used.
Clear aligners, such as Invisalign or ClearCorrect, are a popular alternative to traditional braces. Instead of brackets and wires, you wear a series of custom-made plastic trays that you swap out roughly every two weeks. Aligners are removable, which makes eating and brushing easier, but they need to stay in your mouth at least 22 hours a day to be effective. They work best for mild to moderate alignment issues and may not be suitable for more complex corrections.
What Treatment Looks Like Start to Finish
Treatment begins with a consultation where the orthodontist takes X-rays, photographs, and sometimes digital scans or impressions of your teeth. This information goes into building a personalized treatment plan that maps out how your teeth need to move.
The active phase starts at your bonding appointment, where brackets are glued to each tooth and the first archwire is placed. This appointment usually takes one to two hours. Expect soreness for the first few days as your teeth begin responding to pressure. Most people find the discomfort manageable with over-the-counter pain relief and soft foods.
From there, you’ll return for adjustment appointments every four to eight weeks. At each visit, the orthodontist evaluates progress and may swap in a thicker or differently shaped archwire to continue guiding teeth into position. These visits are shorter, typically 15 to 30 minutes.
When your teeth have reached their final positions, the braces come off in a “debanding” appointment. The brackets are carefully removed, any remaining adhesive is cleaned from the tooth surfaces, and you move into the retention phase.
Caring for Your Teeth During Treatment
Brackets and wires create dozens of small spaces where food can get trapped, making thorough brushing and flossing more important than ever. Plan to brush after every meal, ideally with a soft-bristled toothbrush angled to clean around and under each bracket. Interdental brushes, the small cone-shaped picks that fit between wires and teeth, make a significant difference in keeping brackets clean.
Certain foods can break brackets or bend wires, leading to extra repair visits and potentially extending treatment time. Hard and crunchy foods are the biggest risk: nuts, popcorn kernels, ice, hard chips, and hard candies like jawbreakers. Sticky foods like caramel, taffy, chewing gum, and gummy candy can pull brackets off teeth. Tough meats like jerky and crusty breads like baguettes can also cause problems.
Sugary drinks and foods increase the risk of cavities forming around brackets, where they’re hardest to clean. Coffee, tea, red wine, and dark berries can stain the elastic ligatures and any ceramic brackets, so it’s worth being mindful of those as well.
Why Retainers Matter After Braces
Getting your braces off isn’t the end of treatment. Teeth have a strong tendency to drift back toward their original positions, especially in the first year after braces are removed. Retainers hold teeth in place while the surrounding bone fully stabilizes.
Fixed retainers are thin metal wires bonded to the back surfaces of your teeth, most commonly on the lower front teeth. They’re invisible to everyone else, don’t affect speech, and can’t be lost since they’re permanently attached. The tradeoff is that flossing around them takes extra effort, and poor cleaning habits can increase the risk of cavities and gum disease near the wire.
Removable retainers come in two main styles: clear plastic trays that look like aligners, and the classic wire-and-acrylic type. You can take them out to eat and clean your teeth, which makes oral hygiene simpler. Removable retainers are often preferred for upper teeth, since a fixed retainer on the upper arch can be damaged by the lower teeth biting against it. The downside is that they only work when you actually wear them, and they can be lost or broken.
Most orthodontists recommend wearing a removable retainer full-time for several months after braces come off, then transitioning to nighttime wear. Many people continue wearing retainers at night indefinitely to prevent any gradual shifting.