When you get an extra day in your year, you have 24 more hours to make a big decision. If you have considered aligning your teeth, closing gaps, fixing your bite, or correcting crowded teeth, Leap Day 2024 is a great time to say yes to braces. On February 29, prioritize the health of your smile and schedule an appointment with an orthodontist, or sign off on the braces you’ve long been considering.
The Reason for Leap Year
Every four years, our calendar gets an extra day. February 29 is known as Leap Day, and it only occurs in years divisible by four. Though many people don’t get the significance of this shift, leap years have an important job.
It takes the earth about 365.25 days to orbit around the sun – which is obviously a little more than our 365 calendar days. This quarter of a day doesn’t align with the solar year and that pushes our calendar out of sync with the seasons. By adding a leap day every four years, the calendar is realigned with the seasons.
Without Leap Day, every year our calendar would be off by almost six hours – after a century, the seasons would be off by 25 days. The result? The northern hemisphere would feel like summer in the typical winter months of February and March. That one extra day every four years delivers about three extra days every 10,000 years. In other words, our calendar and seasons stay on track.
Make an Orthodontic Decision in Leap Year
Some people might argue that not-so-great things have happened in leap years, like the Titanic sinking (1912), but gold was discovered in a leap year (1848) and the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in a leap year (1620). So, it could be argued that one of the best times to start braces or Invisalign is during a leap year.
Your orthodontist has more rationale to share:
- Timing is everything. Leap year or not, it’s always a good time to invest in your oral health. Braces are an amazing way to upgrade your life, transform your smile, and feel good about yourself.
- Treatment will be over long before the next leap year. Unless you have severe alignment problems that require lengthy treatment, your braces journey will end within about 18 months for conventional braces or a year for Invisalign.
- Results last forever. Long past this leap year and the dozens more leap years to come in your lifetime, your straightened teeth will remain straight – as long as you take good care of them and wear your retainer as instructed.
- You have choices: While we are stuck with one extra day in a leap year whether we like it or not, many patients have options when it comes to orthodontics, choosing from metal braces, ceramic braces, and Invisalign.
Ready to start your orthodontic journey? Schedule a consultation with Soleil Orthodontics in Woodinville, WA, to learn more.