Braces serve an important purpose and that is to correct the alignment of a person’s teeth. But they’re not cheap and they take years to achieve its goal depending on an individual’s dental structure.
The traditional type is made of metal while the latest kind is made of plastic. The plastic one popularly known as the invisible braces is ideal only for people with a slight teeth misalignment problem.
Teenagers who wear the real braces will admit that it’s a tough experience for them to go through this teeth straightening process. It can be a challenge to eat what they want and brush their teeth afterwards and many feel embarrassed when they have it.
In some Asian countries these days, though, the fake braces is a popular fashion trend among the teens for four years now. Many youngsters from Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are wearing this new accessory to follow Eastern pop stars who wear the real metal thing. They buy these metal, plastic and rubber mouthpieces with colorful and cartoon designs to give them some confidence boost that they can also wear the braces even though just the artificial type.
Each of these fake mouthpiece costs around $100. In Thailand, a dental procedure that involves the genuine braces costs $1,200 which not many families in the country can afford.
But the experts warn against frequent use of this mouth accessory. There are adverse effects in wearing the fake braces such as developing sores on the gums and inside the mouth, the lead that may be in the wires can cause problems later on and the mouthpiece can come loose and slip into a person’s throat. Reports have it that two teens have already died due to wearing this fake braces.