Freaky new trend: baby braces
In today's image conscious society, more and more children under 17 are getting braces, with a 46% increase over the past decade. According to the American Association of Orthodontists, 3.8 million kids had the treatment in 2008. But what these numbers don't say is just how young these kids are. Lee W. Graber, the Association's president, told the Wall Street Journal 15% to 20% of his 7- to 10-year-old patients are getting braces, often on their baby teeth.
This new trend in youngsters getting braces does seem to be society driven. Parents want their kids to look perfect, even if that means fixing that charming youthful gap between their baby teeth. Some adults recall their traumatic experiences with braces, and hope their kids can avoid teasing from buck teeth or being called "brace face" by getting their orthodontic work out of the way at a young age. Janice Slonecker Berman, got braces for her eight-year-old daughter, Bailey, to correct a crooked front tooth. Six braces across her top teeth cost around $900, and insurance covered half. "We are hoping it will let her avoid a ton of braces later," Berman told the Wall Street Journal. But what some parents don't realize is many dental conditions return or will need further work during their teen years.
Children with some simple problems can benefit from early treatment, but other conditions may be best treated during adolescence. An underbite is easier to correct while you're growing as braces will help to widen the jaw, and patients can be treated as early as seven years old. An overbite, however, typically comes back during your teens, and may not be made any easier with an earlier treatment. Twice as much time in braces with a much bigger bill? Where's the sense in that?
And while younger children receive the treatment, parents are split on the results. Some feel like it's money well spent, while others think doctors are forcing unnecessary braces on their kids. When one orthodontist told Michelle Parven her third grade son needed braces, she took him to another doctor for a second opinion. "I feel like orthodontics is a money maker and some take advantage of that," she said. The doctors themselves insist this is a societal shift and the patients are to blame for the upswing in braces. "We aren't trying to grab business," Cynthia Beeman, associate professor of orthodontics at the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry in Lexington told the Wall Street Journal. "It is in the culture now that kids want to look like celebrities." Gregory King, professor of orthodontics at the University of Washington, Seattle, feels parents may be going overboard on aiding their child's appearance. "I have a personal sense that more gets done than is necessary."
If a simple, affordable procedure can be performed at a young age and help the child later on, that would seem logical, but it seems that more often than not kids do need braces a second time as they mature. Also, maybe it's just us, but seven years old seems too young to endure a procedure like this! Has anyone taken their child in for braces at a young age and seen the benefits? Or if you've suffered through braces yourself, do you see the value in waiting till later?
