I have crooked teeth but do not want a mouth full of metal braces at the age of 42. I was thinking that I may be able to get a dental flipper that could fit over my teeth and make them look straight when I am out in public. Have you seen something like that work before? If not, is there a better option?

Terry

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Dear Terry,

I am glad you wrote. A dental flipper doesn’t fit over teeth. It is actually just a false tooth used to fill in a space. You may be thinking of the Snap-On smile procedure. This will fit over your teeth. They are not going to look stunning, like porcelain veneers would. This is because Snap-On smile is made of acrylic. I would look at is as something that could be adequate. This can look a little bulky because it snaps over your teeth.

My suggestion will allow you to have actual straight teeth all the time, and not just when you are out in public. Don’t worry, you will not have to wear braces. Instead, I am going to suggest you get Invisalign. These use clear aligners (pictured above) which can be used to straighten your teeth. Using an advanced software system, these can straighten your teeth in about half the time of traditional braces. Plus, no one will even know you are wearing them, even at a conversational distance. They are like having invisible braces.

As you may have realized, our teeth pick up stains as we age. Because of that, you may also be interested in whitening your teeth. If so, the Invisalign aligners can double as teeth whitening trays. This allows you to straighten and whiten your teeth at the same time. It also actually saves you some money because you won’t need the teeth whitening trays. The aligners work the same way. All your dentist will need to provide for you is the teeth whitening gel.

This blog is brought to you by Decatur, AL Dentists Drs. Drake and Wallace.