BRACE YOURSELF TIN GRINS ARE FASHIONABLE, EVEN FOR ADULTS (Phoenix) Arizona Business Ga (c) 1996 Phoenix Newspapers. All rts. reserv. 07762085 BRACE YOURSELF TIN GRINS ARE FASHIONABLE, EVEN FOR ADULTS Phoenix Gazette (PG) - MONDAY, September 19, 1994 By: Victor Dricks, THE PHOENIX GAZETTE Edition: Final Section: Metro Page: B1 Word Count: 878 MEMO: MEMO: Photo reprints available. Please call (602) 271-8298 for cost information. TEXT: Fourteen-year-old Tiffany Boren of Scottsdale, with braces on her upper and lower teeth, doesn't worry about being teased by her friends. These days, it's the teens without braces that get the ribbings, she says. "Everybody my age has braces," the Arcadia High School sophomore says, flashing a smile made perfect by braces that will be removed in late September. "It's no big deal anymore. Braces are very cool." Tiffany's father, Dan, is happy his daughter hasn't had to endure the jeers of classmates. "Back when I was a kid, anyone with braces was called a picket face, or a metal mouth," the 42-year-old contractor said. "I guess we've come a ways." More people, young and old, are getting braces today than ever before, according to the American Association of Orthodontists. An estimated 1,358,000 Americans had braces put on their teeth in 1992, a spokeswoman said. And more than 2.5 million U.S. children wear braces on their teeth -- about one in every six kids between the ages of 11 and 14. Orthodontists say the boom is fueled by a growing social acceptance of braces, the greater willingness of insurance companies to pay a portion of the expense, advances in dental technology and the emphasis on good looks in today's society. "Doing something for yourself is not necessarily seen as a sign of vanity, the way it might have been years ago," said Dr. Bruce Goldstein, a Phoenix orthodontist. Years ago, braces were made of metal, with metal brackets and wires. Today, metal, clear or ceramic brackets glued to each tooth make braces more appealing. Advances such as wires made of a titanium-nickel alloy that have a molecular memory, have also changed orthodontics. Stretched across teeth, the wires exert a gentle, yet steady, pressure as they try to return to their original shape, slowly forcing teeth to change position. "With these, kids don't have to come back to get the wires on their braces replaced as often as they used to," said Dr. Charles Polk, a Phoenix orthodontist. "And this means fewer appointments and shorter treatment time." Also coming into use is another wire made of a copper-titanium alloy. It is activated by the patient's body heat and can be temporarily deactivated, if it becomes uncomfortable, by a cold drink that chills the patient's mouth. And as technology has changed, so has style. Braces today are considered a fashion accessory. Rubber bands around the braces come in neon colors or soft pastels. "I can't keep the Suns colors in stock because they're so popular," Goldstein said. "Kids like to wear special colors like black and orange for Halloween or green and red for Christmas. They're even coming out with colored wires soon." Even retainers -- those acrylic things that stick to the roof of your mouth and hold your straightened teeth in place after braces are removed -- are making fashion statements. Once made of plain, gum-colored plastic, retainers now come in colors such as purple, lime and orange as well as glow-in-the-dark. "My friend has a retainer with a picture of Mickey Mouse on it," Tiffany said. While young people favor brightly colored braces and retainers, adults tend to prefer a more natural look. "A lot of parents bring their children in, see what we can do and decide to get braces for themselves," Polk said. As a result, braces are more popular than ever with adults. AAO estimates there are 1.5 million adults wearing braces today, compared with 300,000 in 1970. "I see more adults every year, and not just people in their 20s and 30s, but people in their 40s and 50s," said Dr. Gilbert Mann, a Phoenix orthodontist who's been practicing for 34 years. "Most of the adults who come to see me tell me something about their teeth has bothered them all their life, and now they're in a position to do something about it so they decide to," Mann said. Tiffany's father, Dan, got braces put on his teeth when he was 20. "I helped a dentist remodel his home and he gave me a good deal on them," Boren said. While the growing popularity of braces has the 12,000-member AAO excited and has created an average income for its members of $160,000 annually, some wonder if the nation may be going overboard in embracing braces. According to a survey by the AAO, 60 percent of those screened by orthodontists eventually begin a course of treatment. "It's hard to believe that many people need braces," said Boren, who expects to spend more than $15,000 on braces for Tiffany, her sisters Shelia, 12, and Angela, 8, and his son, Steven, 6. "There really isn't going to be much of a debate over the matter. But I wonder how other parents feel this way? It's tough to argue with a dentist or an orthodontist. When they tell you that you need something, they can be very convincing." CAPTION: A smile can be more than an umbrella. Dr. Bruce Goldstein shows some orthodontia that makes a fashion statement. Students like Tiffany Boren, 14, don't have to endure the jokes that were prompted by braces in the 1960s. Copyright (c) 1994, Phoenix Newspapers Inc.