Life With Braces: Is It Normal For Your Teeth To Feel Loose?

Dentist Blog

One of the pleasant things about braces treatment is the predictability of the process. Your orthodontist will determine the best alignment for your teeth, with the braces then working to achieve this alignment. You'll still see your orthodontist regularly to chart your progress and allow for any course corrections. But it's all quite comfortingly predictable. However, there can be parts of the process that you weren't expecting, throwing an element of unpredictability into the mix. Is it normal for your teeth to feel loose during your treatment, or is it a sign that something has gone wrong?

An Unfamiliar Sensation

Braces move teeth, and this movement can (initially at least) be unnerving. It's an unfamiliar sensation, and it's easy enough to confuse the intended movement of your teeth with a feeling of looseness—as though your teeth are in danger of falling out. There's no need to panic because your smile is perfectly secure. Your teeth are just moving while still remaining firmly anchored.

Bone Remodeling 

Your teeth are moving because the pressure applied via the brackets attached to your teeth is triggering something called bone remodeling. Your dental sockets (which hold your teeth) are found in a dense, bony ridge (called the alveolar ridge), which is part of your jaw. Pressure from your braces gently coaxes your teeth into their new position. This causes your alveolar ridge to reform (or remodel) around the dental socket in its new position. It's an ongoing process, which continues throughout your braces treatment. Remember that this movement is normal, necessary, and is not your teeth becoming loose.

Changes to Expect

It's also important to note that the alignment of your teeth may temporarily become worse before it gets better. As teeth are moved into their optimal position, they may rotate, overlap, and the spacing between them will change. Again, this is not a sign of your teeth loosening. It's just that the route they must take to alignment isn't always the most straightforward one. Your teeth are likely to briefly become sensitive each time your braces are adjusted, but this is a natural reaction and doesn't mean that anything is affecting the stability of your teeth. 

If you should be concerned that your teeth are feeling uncomfortably unstable during your braces treatment, please consult your orthodontist. But such a complaint can easily be addressed by adjusting your braces. Because when someone is wearing braces, shifting teeth aren't loose teeth.

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15 June 2022

The Reasons Why You Should Get A Root Canal

Hi, my name is Kevin Nelson and I want to tell you about my experience. I had a painful tooth so I went to see my dentist. After the examination, he said that I needed to have a root canal to save the tooth. I told the dentist to just pull the tooth instead and then he explained why that wasn't a good idea. He said that pulling the tooth would cause additional problems and then he told me what could happen. I didn't want any more problems, so the dentist did the root canal and I'm glad that he did. I wanted to write a blog to tell others about the benefits of a root canal and what to expect during the procedure. I hope that by getting the word out, other people won't make the same mistake that I almost did by getting a perfectly good tooth pulled.