Military personnel endure rigorous physical training, demanding schedules, and high-stress environments. Oral health isn’t always at the top of their priority list, but it’s an important aspect of health and wellness. Orthodontic care falls into this category. Using an orthodontist in NJ can ensure you get the care and expertise you deserve and that you’re truly ready to face whatever life is going to throw at you. Consider this care a strong part of mission readiness and don’t neglect it.

In this guide, we take a closer look at why orthodontic care is so important for military personnel and provide some insight for having your needs met. Whether you’re considering Invisalign at McGuire Air Force Base or you need real braces at McGuire Air Force Base, this guide is for you!

Oral Health Affects Physical Readiness

You go through extensive physical training to be prepared for any assignment and deployment, right? Oral health is a strong part of physical preparedness, although it’s often forgotten or pushed aside. Here’s the thing. Taking care of dental issues with your NJ orthodontist just might lead to issues that will cause problems with a service member’s ability to perform their duties.

Misaligned teeth and improper bites aren’t just an aesthetic issue or a nuisance. They are a direct part of oral and physical health. Not taking care of these concerns can lead to issues like these:

  • Chronic jaw pain
  • Headaches
  • Increased risk of gum disease and tooth decay
  • Difficulty chewing
  • Problems with speech

Getting proper care and treatment can help prevent these issues from happening and ensure you handle minor things before they turn into a career hindrance or you’re deployed somewhere and can’t treat a persistent issue.

An Orthodontic Issue Might Impact Deployment

The military does very specific assessments before any deployment. They have stringent physical and health requirements and if you can’t pass those, you don’t get to go. Going through braces at McGuire Air Force Base could be the step you need to be prepared and physically approved for your deployment. While this won’t be the case for everyone, it certainly could be true for many.

Oral health is one of the physical conditions reviewed before determining deployment eligibility. Dental issues fall into specific classifications and at a certainly level of classification, a service member is deemed ineligible. This is a class 3 dental status, which indicates a severe or urgent dental issue and it’s possible that issue could be related to a need for orthodontic care. At the least, care will help prevent issues that limit deployment opportunities.

Protection in Physical Training and Combat

If you know that you are going to be in a vulnerable position upon approval, it may be best to opt for Invisalign at McGuire Air Force Base. Speak to your orthodontist in NJ to create a plan and know the best option for your needs and care.

Orthodontic care can provide protection for you in what is a grueling field and career. From physical training to combat scenarios, service members are often engaged in physically demanding tasks. Overlooking common orthodontic issues like jaw problems or even misaligned teeth might actually make you more vulnerable to oral injuries and hazards. With orthodontic solutions, you can give yourself the gift of oral protection.

Improved alignment and jaw health helps prevent fractured and chipped teeth, soft tissue injuries, and jaw fractures from occurring.

Enhance Speech and Communication

Being able to communicate clearly and without difficulty is so important in the military. Whether you’re on a special mission or you are part of briefings and communication on base, you’ve got to be able to communicate without speech challenges and issues. Miscommunications can lead to major problems that put lives at risk.

Instead, addressing those oral health concerns that cause speech impediments and other challenges can help prevent misunderstandings because speech is not negatively impacted. In a critical situation, this could be lifesaving.

It’s simply not worth the risk to have any speech problems related to oral health issues if it can be avoided. A simple dental misalignment could cause a speech challenge. The best thing to do is get the appropriate care and resolve these issues so you can speak clearly and confidently no matter the situation.

Prevent TMJ and Chronic Pain

If you experience any kind of chronic pain or TMJ symptoms, these are not going to just disappear. In fact, going into exertive physical scenarios and high-stress situations might actually compound those issues and make them worse. These conditions are miserable enough without worrying about them being made worse while you’re in the field and unable to seek treatment.

TMJ is one of the most common orthodontic issues among military members and people experience things like jaw pain, clicking sounds when opening or closing their mouth, and even difficulty opening their mouth. Physical strain and stress make it worse and can lead to long-term complications too.

Improved Sleep and Breathing

Military service members often have very strict regimens that have you out of bed bright and early in the mornings. You train hard, work hard, and fall into bed exhausted at night. But when you have any type of sleep apnea, breathing difficulty, or other alignment issues with your jaw, these can cause you not to sleep well. Yet sleep is so important to prepare you for the next hard day ahead.

With the proper orthodontic care, you can experience improved sleep so you wake far more refreshed. In addition, proper treatment and alignment improves breathing, which will help you when you’re active in the field too.

Long Term Benefits

The truth is that seeking orthodontic services in the military and before deployment has many short-term benefits for your military career, but they also have long-term benefits too. This is an investment that will contribute to your lifelong oral health and help to prevent future dental complications that could arise from lack of care.

Conclusion

Orthodontic care for military personnel isn’t just for aesthetic purposes. It’s to support their military career and it’s certainly a critical component for health and wellness throughout that career. Addressing issues early and before they become major challenges will be so much better to be ready for any mission or deployment that may come your way.