What should a healthy tooth look like? Healthy teeth generally meet these criteria: 1, no dental caries, periodontal disease and other oral diseases; 2, the appearance and color of the teeth are normal; 3, the teeth are neatly aligned; 4, the upper and lower teeth bite relationship is also normal. If these conditions are met, it can be considered healthy and beautiful teeth. What are the dental deformities that need to be corrected? Any dental deformity that affects aesthetics and function should be corrected. The most common ones are misalignment of the teeth and some abnormalities of the bite, such as what is commonly known as underbite, also known as enamel, and buck teeth, which are all problems with the bite. There are other special cases that can be examined in the hospital and the doctor will determine if orthodontic treatment is needed. What are the causes of misaligned teeth? There are two main causes of misaligned teeth, one is genetic, parents or immediate family members have misaligned teeth or poor bite, children are also prone to similar problems; the other is the influence of the acquired environment, such as milk teeth are not protected, premature loss, and some bad habits, such as lip biting, finger sipping, etc. can also lead to misaligned teeth. What are the dangers of misaligned teeth? The first harm of misalignment is the aesthetic impact, some children may have their self-confidence set back because of their unattractive teeth; the second is the functional impact, some serious teeth misalignment or poor bite will affect the patient’s chewing function, which will affect the body’s digestion and absorption of food. There are some cases of misalignment that also affect the self-cleaning function of the teeth, the teeth themselves have a self-cleaning effect, healthy teeth have a cleaning effect on the surface of the teeth when chewing food. The misalignment of teeth also affects the brushing of teeth, which can’t be brushed in many places and may cause gingivitis and periodontitis, as well as tooth decay. In addition, some bite abnormalities also affect the health of the temporomandibular joint. What are the methods to correct dental irregularities? Orthodontic treatment is mainly carried out by doctors through the use of a variety of orthodontic appliances, which can be broadly divided into three categories: movable braces, functional braces and fixed braces. The more clinically used is fixed orthodontic appliances, commonly known as “steel braces”, about eighty to ninety percent of patients are treated with fixed orthodontic appliances. Fixed orthodontic appliances are suitable for basically all types of dental malocclusion and are more effective. Do I need to have my teeth extracted for orthodontic treatment? In about fifty percent of patients, orthodontic treatment requires tooth extraction. Teeth grow in the upper and lower jawbone, and the size of the jawbone determines whether the teeth are lined up properly. Modern people eat very fine food and do not need strong chewing function, so their jawbone is slowly degenerating, but the number and size of teeth remain almost the same, so many teeth arranged in a relatively small jawbone, there will be a variety of misalignment, so modern people have misaligned teeth is very common, the treatment needs to reduce the number of teeth to fit the smaller jawbone. When is the best time to straighten my child’s misaligned teeth? The best age for orthodontic treatment is between ten and fourteen years old, but there are some cases where orthodontic treatment should be done earlier, for example, if the child is found to have “diastema” during his or her teething years, he or she can be examined and treated at the age of four or five. Other cases, such as children with bad habits that cause crooked teeth, should be treated as soon as they are detected. Parents are advised to bring their children to the hospital for regular dental checkups to detect the problem as early as possible. Can adults with misaligned teeth undergo orthodontic treatment? In terms of current technology, there is no age limit for orthodontics, and it can be done as long as oral conditions allow. However, orthodontic treatment for adults is more complicated than for children because adults may have caries, periodontal disease, missing teeth, etc. in their mouths. The course of orthodontic treatment for adults is a little longer than that for children. For adult orthodontics, the doctor will do an examination first to see if he has any other problems, such as dental caries, periodontal disease, etc. He will usually be advised to go for treatment first and then orthodontics. Can malocclusion be prevented? There is basically no way to prevent malocclusion caused by genetic factors, but there are some malocclusions that can be prevented. Parents should take care of their children’s milk teeth at a very young age and teach them to brush their teeth during their teething years. Because premature loss of baby teeth will affect the child’s permanent teeth in the future, it is important to pay attention to the maintenance of dental health from an early age. Secondly, we should pay attention to correct some bad habits of children’s teeth, such as biting lips and fingers, and correct them as soon as they are found, which can also prevent the occurrence of some malocclusion. When parents prepare food for their children, they can prepare some chewy food, without making the food especially fine and swallowing it without chewing, because proper chewing is good for stimulating the development of jawbone and can also avoid the occurrence of misaligned teeth.