“Braces” are a combination of “brackets” and “wires”. Brackets are the part of the braces that attach to the teeth. Brackets are the “handles” that help control movement of the teeth. Braces require a wire called an “archwire” that connects the brackets and provides the forces to steer the teeth in the proper direction. It’s actually the wires that move teeth. The interaction of brackets and archwires enables the orthodontist to have three-dimensional control over the movement of the teeth. In many cases, additional forces are needed to help balance the underlying jaw structure and to help the upper and lower teeth fit properly together to make the bite right.

When your teeth have pressure applied to them, the membrane that surrounds the roots of the tooth expands on one side and constricts on the other, causing the tooth to loosen from the gums. When the tooth stops moving, the bone around the membrane grows in to provide support to the tooth in its new place. This movement needs to be done slowly otherwise the patient risks losing his or her teeth. This is why braces are commonly worn for two to two and a half years and adjustments are only made every three or four weeks.

The reason this works is because arch wires are wires that want to keep their original shape and will exert a great deal of force to return to their original arch shape. The materials used to make the arch wire increase their stiffness when exposed to a person’s body heat. It is the combination of your body heat and the desire of the arch wire to keep its shape that provide the wire with enough strength to pressure your teeth to move.

Braces alone, however, are not always able to do the work by themselves. Sometimes your orthodontist will also use rubber bands to manipulate the pressure to pull the teeth in the correct direction. Other times, your orthodontist will require you to wear headgear. Headgear keeps some teeth in place while allowing others to move, and to enforce the alignment of the teeth as they move into their new positions.

Another part of the braces process is the Retainer, which needs to be worn for up to ten months after your braces are removed, to hold the teeth in their fixed positions until the bone can grow in to keep them there.