It is our innate human nature to want to look good and get recognition, especially from our peers. One of the first things people will notice about you is your smile, but with numerous dental concerns that can hit just anybody, attaining the perfect look may not always be the easiest.
To get the ideal smile, especially if you have misaligned teeth, the best solution would be to get orthodontic treatment. However, such treatment is often quite expensive. For those looking to straighten their teeth but find orthodontic treatment costly, the biggest trap they mostly fall into is the fake braces trend.
So, what exactly are fake braces? Are they safe? What are the best fake braces alternatives? Here’s a comprehensive post to help you get the answers to these and many other questions.
What Are Fake Braces?
Fake braces DIY — also known as fashion braces — look similar to orthodontic braces, just that they are made with brackets and a piece of wire. In most cases, the wire is molded to fit the shape of the teeth before having it glued to them. Moreover, most wearers of these braces may add ornamentation to the brackets and bands.
Most people who wear these braces are teens or those who only wish to wear them for cosmetic purposes or simply because they wish to align their teeth but cannot afford the steep prices of orthodontic braces.
You can buy these DIY fake braces from illegal outlets or make them yourself using online tutorials. All you have to do is type in the phrase ‘how to make fake braces,’ and you’ll see a plethora of tutorials to follow.
While they may appear to be built like real braces, fake braces often post more risks to the wearer, which are more than the benefits that you would otherwise get from them. For whatever reason, The Teeth Blog does not endorse the use of fake braces, and we will always advise our readers to seek professional assistance with anything to do with their dental health.
Why Are Fake Braces so Popular?
The main reason fake braces are so popular, especially among teens, is that they are readily available and cost way less than real braces. Moreover, teens love following trends they see online. If they see someone wearing braces, they would think that they should also get them to ‘look cool.’
Moreover, with the increased unmonitored social media usage among teens, it is easy for them to find DIY tutorials online. Due to peer pressure, they may also be tempted to hop onto the trends.
What People Do to Fake Braces to Look Natural?
With loads of creativity in the world and access to so much information only a button click away, it is quite easy now to create fake braces that look real. In fact, fake click braces appear even more cosmetically appealing than real braces, whose primary function is to give you a better, real smile.
Besides, not many people will actually keenly look at your teeth to ascertain whether you have real or fake braces. From afar, they all look similar, with fake braces appearing even more good-looking. This is because they are mostly decorative and not functional in any way. There are people that know how to make fake braces that look realistic and avail to you at a low price.
There are tons of tutorials online that can help you understand how to make fake braces, and when you give it a try, you will be surprised at how easy it is to make these realistic fake braces.
Nevertheless, although you can easily make or purchase fake braces that look natural, we strongly advise our readers not to use them for whatever reasons. Always seek proper dental assistance whenever you require any cosmetic improvements on your teeth.
Reasons People Wear Fake Braces
There are many reasons why people wear fake braces for teeth. While many of them wear them for cosmetic reasons, some of them will actually look for fake braces to help them straighten their teeth or to resolve any orthodontic issues.
Here are some of the main reasons people opt for fake braces:
Trends
Most people, especially teenagers, always want to hop on the latest trends. Whenever they see colorful braces, they refer to them as ‘cool’ and will make you look trendy among your peers if you also got them. This is why there are so many fake braces for kids that you can get online.
Even though you can still find genuine colorful braces from an orthodontist, most of these teenagers may not afford them, or they may not even really need them in the first place. Therefore, they resort to these fake color braces as the go-to cheap solution — without realizing the detrimental side effects.
Status symbol
It is only natural for most people to be associated with the best things or people. Braces are quite expensive, and not everyone is able to afford the steep prices. They resort to getting fake braces to appear as part of the group that can actually afford to pay the high braces costs.
These fake braces are readily available and at a lower price, but ideally, not everyone can easily tell apart real from fake braces.
Crooked teeth
Orthodontic braces treatment is often quite expensive, and not many people can easily afford the steep prices, especially in cases where they do not have dental insurance or know how to get braces for free. In this case, most of them resort to fake braces to allegedly help them straighten their teeth.
However, this is not a good idea, as taking the DIY route for any dental treatments has a high probability of failing with adverse effects on your general health and appearance.
As part of a costume
Although people get fake braces to wear for a long time — mainly to boost their dental aesthetics — others only want to wear them temporarily as part of a costume. This is mostly the case during costume or Halloween parties.
If this is the case, you can easily get good Halloween fake braces from a local store. Such braces are only used for a short period and can be good props for photoshoots. Moreover, such fake braces may not require strong adhesives, meaning they may not have any major impact on your teeth.
Getting such braces may not be difficult as there are tons of stores that sell them. One way you can get started is by searching online for ‘fake braces Wish’ to explore a variety that suits the occasion.
Such fake braces can cost as low as $10, or you can get more realistically-looking fake braces for up to $300. The latter is mostly used in movie sets or purely for professional photo shoots, with no intention of having any functional impacts.
Risks of Wearing Fake Braces
Although they are quite cheap compared to real, dentist-approved braces, fake braces come with many risks involved.
Here are some of the reasons why wearing fake braces is not recommended by any qualified dental practitioner:
Poisoning
Fake braces are made out of materials that are not approved for human use. This means that they may contain harmful materials that can be toxic. Most fake teeth braces are made of cheap untreated rubber and metals that can contain lead, which eventually leads to poisoning, and in extreme cases, even death.
Choking
DIY dental braces are not the best as the materials used in making them are not guaranteed to stick to the recommended position. At times, the materials used might unwind and end up choking them. This raises a huge alarm as it might end in a fatality.
If you get advice on putting on fake braces from an online tutorial, it probably didn’t come from a dental professional.
Infections
In some cases, even with real braces, the chances of one getting inflammations are high. Inflammations create a center stage for infections to kick in, but when getting orthodontic treatment from a qualified dentist, you can easily resolve or avoid these infections.
Unfortunately, whenever inflammations and infections occur due to fake or DIY braces, the wearer may not know of the best course of action to take to prevent it from getting any worse. Moreover, infections from such braces may be even worse as the materials and procedures are not recommended.
Tooth decay
When getting fake braces or creating DIY braces, cheap adhesives are used to attach the wires, brackets, and teeth. This may cause some severe damage to your teeth, wearing down the enamel. These adhesives also bring forth tooth discoloration and decay over time.
Uncontrolled shifting of teeth
One of the reasons why some people get fake or DIY braces is to get a cheaper alternative to help with teeth alignment. However, it would be prudent to note that all braces you get from a dentist have been meticulously planned for, meaning that the way they move teeth has been well-planned.
DIY braces do not have their teeth movements planned out. This can be a huge problem as they might move your teeth to an undesired position. In the end, your teeth may be in a very undesirable position than they were originally in, forcing you to seek proper dental treatment.
How Much Do Fake Braces Cost?
Only the cost of top braces is often pretty high, in the thousands of dollars, so a full treatment can end up being very expensive. But exactly how much are fake braces?
Fake braces cost as little as $10 to around $300 for the high-end versions. Real braces cost thousands of dollars. The cost for fake braces comes even lower if you make them yourself at home using readily available materials. As they are not functional, you may not have to budget for things such as fake braces retainers.
Alternatives to Fake Braces
Instead of risking your dental health, it would be advisable to consider fake braces alternatives that can give you a better appearance without using DIY risky options.
Some of the alternatives to fake braces are:
If you do not like the appearance of the standard braces, and perhaps that’s why you opted for DIY braces, you still have plenty of options, especially with clear aligners.
Clear aligners like Invisalign offer orthodontic treatment, helping you achieve a better smile without depending on standard braces. Clear aligners are made of clear medically-approved plastic that can move your teeth to the desired position.
You can compare the whole Invisalign vs braces cost to determine which of the two is ideal for you.
Instead of going for the fake braces, why not just simply go for the real ones? In case you’re being taken aback due to the exorbitantly high braces prices, there are still other ways you can get cheap braces.
If you only need the braces for an event, you can easily get fake clip on braces for teeth from your local store or simply off the internet from the nearest retailers.
Are you looking for a better-looking smile, but do not wish to alter your dental structure? Dental veneers are some of the best alternatives to braces when you just want to boost the aesthetic appearance of your teeth without changing any dental structures.
Depending on your specific needs, you can get temporary or permanent veneers.
Fake Braces vs. Real Braces
Besides one being fake and the other being ‘real,’ there are several notable differences between fake and real braces. Here’s an in-depth overview of real braces vs fake braces.
FAQ
The sale of fake braces as a replacement for real braces to offer functional assistance is illegal in many places and could land one in jail or be forced to pay hefty fines. However, the sale of fake teeth for cosmetic purposes, such as for use during events such as Halloween, is not outlawed in some places. Ensure to check for your location-specific laws to get clarity.
There are many places you can get fake braces that appear real. You can simply start off with a simple search online to get a few suggestions near you.
The bottom line recommendation from dentists is to avoid fake braces at all costs. In case you wear them, you open up yourself to the risk of poisoning, choking, tooth decay, and much more.
Although you can use DIY tutorials to make your own braces, these fake braces are never functional and will pose more harm than good should you choose to wear them. Ensure only to get proper braces from an orthodontist.
Sources
- The Dangers of Fake Braces, DIY Braces, & More. (2017). Retrieved 30 August 2022, from https://accorde.com/the-dangers-of-fake-braces-diy-braces-more/
- Risks of Wearing Cheap and Fake Braces. (2016). Retrieved 30 August 2022, from https://shinagawa.ph/risk-wearing-cheap-fake-braces/
- Fake Braces Becoming Problem in Asia. (2013). Retrieved 30 August 2022, from https://www.dentistrytoday.com/fake-braces-becoming-problem-in-asia/
- Fake Braces Trend Takes Asia by Storm. (2013). Retrieved 30 August 2022, from https://www.cnbc.com/id/100353458
- Elemental and microstructural analysis of fake, real, and standard orthodontic brackets. (2018). Retrieved 30 August 2022, from https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1742-6596/1073/5/052002/pdf
