I talked to adults who tell us how to live with a mouth full of irons. In the 80s and 90s it was a children's thing. Now even celebrities wear orthodontics with pride. Worth it?

I remember it like it was yesterday. That feeling of your tongue brushing against metal. That pressure on the whole jaw, which became especially unbearable at night. And above all, that strange and disturbing aspect that I myself thought I showed the whole world every time I smiled.

Yes: I was one of those tweens who, just released the 90s, wore a device. Although mine was not so bad: after evaluating my superior rednecks, which had reached a deviation more typical of a rodent than a human child, my dentist decided that a removable appliance was enough, and not one of the monstrous braces that turned my classmates into walking hardware stores. He gave me a ridiculous little bag to hang around my neck and put it away when I ate, and during the following months he made me stop by the office every Thursday to tighten the relevant screw and bring my infant teeth to the longed for rectitude.

Today orthodontics has changed substantially. It is no longer just children who wear an appliance, but practically anyone, regardless of age. Braces are infinitely more wearable, and technical advances have made it possible to have practically invisible orthodontic braces Invisalign. Even celebrities like Tom Cruise, Beyoncé or the folksy and emeritus King Juan Carlos have worn them publicly, causing some to speculate that the device might become fashionable.

Let's start there: nothing fashionable. Orthodontics sucks, and this is emphasized by each and every one of the people with whom I have spoken on the subject. It hurts, it's expensive, and it's ugly, even if there are colored braces. Wearing an appliance has nothing cool, beyond the perfect teeth that you will have when they remove it. So if you are thinking of wearing it, be clear that you are going to count the hours until that torture ends. And they are not few: the average treatment lasts around two years.

"Everything is bad," confirms Maria, 37, with some resignation. "And it also gets complicated little by little: every time you go to the dentist, he adds something else. And thank goodness that it is so, because otherwise I imagine that you would not last a month with it on. I was the first one, counting the days. Later you notice that your teeth start to move and it's cool: it's motivating. After that, everything slows down and is desperate. They say that there comes a time when you get used to it and stop seeing the device, but that has not happened to me ".

Then there is, of course, the discomfort of living with a metal structure in the mouth, an organ that was not exactly designed for it. "The braces are bulky enough, and your face changes even with your mouth closed," confirms María. "It also makes it difficult to pronounce any letter, which in my case was the efe. I remember my boss teasing me by saying, "Come on, say the Foo Fighters sign records at Fnac! What a bastard ".

Despite all the negatives, and when there is little time left for them to remove it, María is clear: "To this day I don't regret it. When they ask me if I recommend it, I count everything bad. If even knowing it you still want to, go ahead ". A decision that is also influenced, of course, by the economic aspect: a complete treatment like yours is around 2,300 euros.

Laura, 33, also made that decision. But unlike Maria, it has just begun. "I handle it well. With discomfort and getting used to not being able to eat certain things, a limitation that at Christmas has been a challenge. What has cost me the most is not feeling ridiculous when I come across a 15-year-old girl who also wears it. But it is comforting to meet people over 40 who have worn it or are going to wear it. "

The motives? "My lower teeth have never been good, although I had no problem or created complexes," says Laura. "But a year ago a tooth started to move up and it made me insecure. Above all, after knowing that problems that go beyond aesthetics can occur at any age ".

María recognizes that aesthetics prevail more than what she said to herself at first. "When making the decision, the issue of health prevailed, since my teeth were a disaster. But later I realized that aesthetics were more present than I thought. Perhaps I refused to admit that my teeth did make me a bit self-conscious. "

In that diatribe between health and aesthetics lies a good part of the question. Is putting on a brace just to want to show off a better smile or are there medical reasons behind it that justify it? Natalia, orthodontist from Cordoba, makes it clear: "Aesthetics rule. People come because their teeth are bad or because they don't like the child's teeth ".

Of course: Natalia remembers that orthodontics was not born to see ourselves better, but to live better. "A correct bite is essential, because not grinding food correctly can lead to digestive system problems. Also when it comes to breathing: there are people who have a very narrow palate, which if not treated, preferably at an early age, can lead to respiratory diseases such as sleep apnea ".

That said, device at this point, yes or no? It is your decision as an adult. And it is well that it should be so, because they did not ask me my opinion when I put it on. I even religiously wore that shameful little bag around my neck to keep the artifact in question.