What makes orthodontic treatment work?

In orthodontic treatment braces are used to apply steady gentle pressure on teeth to gradually move them to their proper positions. The main components of the braces are the brackets that are placed on the teeth and the archwire that connects them. The archwire that is placed in the brackets are slightly deformed to fit teeth that are not yet straight. Therefore, the archwire tries to return to its original shape, in the process applying pressure on the teeth to move them to their more ideal positions. Once the teeth line up, the wires fit the brackets in a more passive manner. They now serve as a track on which the teeth are moved.