Adults embracing braces; Move over, Junior: For both health and cosmetic explanations, one out of e

American Association of Orthodontists BRACE YOURSELF ONE OF THE REASONS a lot more adults seem to be prepared to wear braces on their teeth is that braces are not nearly as aesthetically jarring as they utilized to be. Typical braces of TWENTY years ago were all metal - metal brackets on your teeth, metal wire around the brackets, along the teeth. INVISIBLE BRACES: Not braces in the typical sense, but clear plastic mouth protectors that are removable. GOLD BRACES: Braces with gold plating are huge right now in California. Lindsay Harris made it to adulthood without having to wear Braces Manly.

But she wasn't as happy about it as you might think. "I should have had them when I was a kid. I was fitted for head gear once, but I was 10 and I didn't really cooperate, so it sort of fell through the cracks," said Harris, 31, a mother of two from Scarborough.

"Both of my incisors on top stuck out, enough that when I shut my mouth, they'd catch."

As an adult, Harris began thinking about getting braces to correct her protruding teeth. She asked her dentist about it, who recommended that she see an orthodontist.

Getting braces wasn't anything she really needed to do, but she chose to. Now she has braces and will wear them for about two years.

More adults are choosing to wear braces today, to the point where the American Association of Orthodontists - their Web site is braces.org - says that one out of five orthodontic patients is an adult. That's about 1 million adults, the association says.

A couple of the big reasons for this, orthodontists and dental health professionals say, is that because of increased health awareness and advances in dental care - like fluoride in the water - people expect to keep their teeth longer. Perhaps their entire life. And they want those teeth to be as straight and healthy as possible.

"I think it's a change in attitude, where people used to figure they'd lose their teeth and have dentures, but now they realize they can keep their teeth their whole lives," said Lisa Howard, an orthodontist in Scarborough. AVERTING PROBLEMS, IMPROVING LOOKS

Some of the problems that crooked teeth can cause include an off- kilter bite, which may cause teeth to crack, or other problems. Crooked teeth can also be harder to floss, leading to tooth decay, Howard said.

People also get braces for cosmetic reasons. They don't really need to correct their crooked teeth, but they want to so they feel better about how they look. And it stands to reason that if people want to keep their teeth longer, they want them to look good, too.

Another big reason more adults are getting braces is that braces are no longer the visually jarring contraptions they once were. Today there are several kinds of so-called "clear" braces, where ceramic brackets and clear rubber bands blend in with the teeth. Only a very thin metal wire across the teeth is clearly visible.

Then there are the so-called invisible braces, clear plastic mouthguards. Unlike regular braces, or clear ceramic braces, they don't have brackets on each tooth, tightened by individual rubber bands and a wire running the length of all the teeth.

The invisible braces come in two pieces - upper and lower - and are removable. But they don't provide as much pressure to move teeth, so they are used for relatively minor corrections.

Still, they probably help persuade a lot of people to do some sort of correction, when they might not have in the past.

"Ceramic braces certainly lead more adults into braces," said Bruce Podhouser, an orthodontist with Orthodontic Associates in South Portland. "And with the (invisible braces) we can get teeth very straight as well."

Orthodontists are dentists who have gone beyond dental school - two to three years' worth, usually - to become specialists in the field of orthodontics, which is the work of correcting problems with bites and with the alignment of teeth. WHY CHOOSE BRACES?

Any dentist, by law, can put braces on and do the same procedures as any orthodontist. But if there is a problem they are held to the same legal standard as an orthodontist. That's why many dentists refer candidates for braces to orthodontists. Some pediatric dentists, however, pursue more training in orthodontics, to put on braces and do other work in young mouths.

Podhouser estimated that when he started with his current practice 13 years ago, 15 to 20 of the patients were adults. Now he says that number is closer to 40 percent.

Cost is a reason, too. Braces for adults and children are still expensive - Howard says most start at about $4,000 to $5,000 - but they haven't increased in price that much over time.

For instance, Podhouser, 42, remembers his family paying $3,000 for his braces some 30 years ago. Some dental insurance will cover a portion of braces, Podhouser said, but most people have to pay the balance off over time.

Elaine Burnham, 39, is one of those adults who wants to keep her teeth her whole life. Her teeth had been slightly crooked on the bottom, and were getting worse, when she happened to visit an orthodontist with her stepdaughter.

At the orthodontist's office, she saw a picture of an older woman with silver hair and her own, perfectly aligned teeth. And beautiful teeth.

"I decided I wanted to be a silver-haired lady with fabulous teeth," said Burnham.

So Burnham got her braces in May 2004, and got them off in January. Now she'll wear a retainer - a thin wire running along the inside of her teeth - for 24 hours a day for at least six months, to finish the job.

Burnham's braces feature clear ceramic brackets on her top teeth and metal brackets on her lower ones. She chose pink rubber bands to go around the brackets on each tooth. A lot of children and teenagers choose different-colored rubber bands to add some fun color.

While wearing the braces, Burnham found out she was pregnant. After finding out she'd have a boy, she switched her rubber band color to blue. FAMILIAR RULES

One thing that has not changed about wearing braces is that the wearer is still supposed to avoid food that could break the brackets or mess up the braces. For instance, Burnham was told to stay away from popcorn, bubble gum, corn on the cob. Staying away from popcorn was tough, but the other no-nos were not, she said.

And as far as being self-conscious about wearing them, Burnham - a co-owner of Acres of Wildlife Campground in Sebago - said braces are great conversation-starters. She met lots of other adults who either had braces or were curious about them.

"There were times when they were uncomfortable," said Burnham. "But my teeth are straighter, they're much more appealing."

Harris, who is a patient of Howard, got her braces more than a year ago and still has them. She's been told she'll probably have them on for two years.

Hers are clear ceramic on top, with clear rubber bands. The bottoms are metal.

"It's pretty much what I expected, not painful, but my mouth was sore when they were first put on, the first few weeks," said Harris. "But I can see the results already."

Harris said there was no significant event that prompted her to get braces.

"It was just about wanting to do this and being ready," she said.

Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at:

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