Braces can help you get straight teeth but it may not always bring happiness and self-confidence, a study suggests.
Published in the journal Orthodontics and Craniofacial Research, the study followed 448 13-year-old kids from South Australia in 1988 and 1989. By the time that they turned 30 in 2005 and 2006 more than a third of them had received orthodontic treatment.
"The study, examined if having braces lead to a greater level of happiness or psychosocial outcomes, later in life. There was a pattern of higher psychosocial scores in people who did not have orthodontic treatment meaning people who hadn't had braces fitted were significantly more optimistic than the ones that did have braces," said Esma Dogramaci, professor at the University of Adelaide.
