As Thich Nhat Hanh once said, "Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy." A smile can change a life, and more importantly, your smile can change your life. Some people are naturally lucky, but orthodontists estimate that about three in four children could benefit from orthodontic work. Although many people think that braces are a waste of time and money, braces treatment could help you improve your life because it significantly increases your self-esteem and helps correct and develop a healthy smile. The reason why I am I am so interested in this topic because I like to think of myself as an orthodontic success story. I got braces during the summer of fifth grade and went to my appointments every five or six weeks for almost three years. Finally, on May 1, 2014, at 10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, I was told the greatest thing I had ever heard: “Okay, we'll schedule your next appointment to have them removed.” I had never been more proud of myself in my 14 years of life. I went from a moderate overbite, diastema (a gap between my two upper front teeth), and crooked teeth, afraid to show my smile, to a happy young man who has no reason to hide his teeth. I will be forever grateful for what they did for me. “Orthodontics” is a portmanteau of two Greek words: “ortho,” meaning “to correct or straighten,” and “odontos,” meaning “tooth” (Smith 256). Orthodontics is the branch of dentistry that diagnoses, prevents and treats problems related to the spacing and positioning of the teeth and malocclusions, irregularities in the way the teeth of the upper jaw occlude or join the teeth of the lower jaw (Smith 256). To realign and reposition...... middle of paper ...... we note that seeing an attractive smile activates the orbitofrontal cortex, the region of the brain that processes sensory rewards, suggesting that when you see a smile, you actually feel rewarded. At the Face Research Laboratory at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, subjects were asked to rate their smile and attractiveness. They found that subjects were more attracted to images of people making eye contact and smiling than those who did not (Ph. D., Ronald). Works Cited Riggio, Ronald E., Ph.D. “There's magic in your smile.” Psychology today. Np, June 25, 2012. Web. May 23, 2014. Smith, Rebecca W. “Orthodontics: More than Braces.” Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery Guide to Family Dental Care. New York: W. W. Norton, 1997. 256-72. Press.