And it's no wonder.

但會痛一點都不奇怪。

Your teeth aren't supposed to move like that, but there's more happening here than meets the eye.

你的牙齒不應該這樣被搬動的，但除了看得見牙齒移動，還有更多看不見的事情在發生。

Braces don't work the way you probably think because they don't just shift your teeth around.

牙套應該不是你想像的運作方式，它們不只是移動你的牙齒而已。

They have to break down your jawbone first.

它們必須先破壞你的下頜骨。

Americans pay up to $7,500 for braces per person, but it's worth it.

一個美國人可以花上 7500 美元戴牙套，不過很值得。

And not just for that perfect, Instagrammable smile.

不只是為了那拍照水噹噹的完美笑容而已。

You see, misaligned teeth are tricky to clean, increasing your risk of tooth decay, gum disease, or even tooth loss.

你瞧，不整齊的牙齒很難清理，因而增加你牙齒腐蝕、牙齦受損、甚至掉牙的危險。

That's where braces can help straighten out the problem.

戴牙套可以幫助防止這些問題。

But moving teeth is no easy feat because there's something in the way: your jawbone.

但是移動牙齒很困難，因為有東西擋路：你的下頜骨。

Now, the orthodontist doesn't take out a drill and break your jaw themselves.

齒科矯正醫生不會直接拿鑽頭打掉你的下顎骨。

Instead, they trick your body into doing the hard work for them.

他們會騙你的身體，讓你的身體代勞。

That's where braces come in.

這就是牙套登場時候了。

The wires are tightened across your teeth in order to create pressure against your gums.

牙套的金屬線會把你的牙齒緊綁在一起為你的牙齦施壓。

In turn, that pressure constricts blood flow to the tissue that holds your teeth in place, sort of like squeezing a hose to stop the water.

接下來，壓力會抑制你固定牙齒的組織進行血液循環，就如同擠壓水管阻止水流一樣。

And without blood, the tissue cells start to die.

沒有血流，那些組織就會壞死。

Now, normally, that would be a major problem because without that supportive tissue, your teeth could fall out.

通常來說，那會是一個很大的問題，因為沒有組織支撐，你可能會掉牙。

But, in this case, that's exactly what the doctor, or, dentist, ordered.

但在這個情況下，這就是醫生想要的結果。

Because your immune system rushes to the rescue, sending in special cells called osteoclasts, which ultimately relieve the pressure and restore blood flow.

因為你的免疫系統會製造破骨細胞來援助，使減壓並讓血液回到流通狀態。

They do this by sucking away the calcium from your jaw bone.

它們吸取你下頜骨的鈣質來達成目的。

Yep, the cells are literally dissolving your bone.

對，那些細胞就是在分解你的骨頭。

It may sound like an extreme solution to the problem, but the result is a nice hole in your jawbone where the tooth can move in away from the wires and all that pressure, ultimately restoring blood flow so that the tissue stays alive and your teeth don't fall out.

聽起來像極端的問題解決方式，但結果就是會在下頜骨留下一個洞讓你的牙齒可以往內移動離開金屬線和壓力讓血液流通，你的組織不會壞死，牙齒也不會掉下來。

But you don't just do all of this once.

但你不是一次就全部完成。

People with braces have to check in with their orthodontist regularly because they need their braces retightened so more teeth can move into place.

戴牙套的人必須固定找齒科矯正醫生回診因為他們的牙套必須重新拉緊才能讓更多牙齒移動。

And the more teeth you have to move, the longer the braces will be on.

越多牙齒需要移動，牙套就要戴越久。

Typically it takes months to a couple years to get the job done, but, eventually, the ordeal ends, the braces come off for good.

通常戴牙套需要花上幾個月甚至幾年的時間才會完成矯正，但最終療程會結束，牙套會永久拆除。

And you can enjoy your new smile.

然後你就可以享受一個全新的微笑了。