Caring for your teeth is usually easy, and unless something changes, how you do it stays pretty much the same throughout your life. But if you get braces, you’ll definitely need to adapt your oral hygiene routine. Braces not only add extra equipment and challenges to keeping your mouth clean, but failing to do so can also make it harder to achieve your hygiene objectives.
Here are some tips for keeping your teeth and braces free of debris, so when your orthodontic treatment is done, you’ll have a healthy smile to showcase!
Brushing with Braces
Braces are notorious for getting food and plaque trapped in their wires and brackets. It doesn’t help that they’re difficult to clean, either. For more efficient oral hygiene, try the following steps for brushing.
- First, rinse your mouth with water. This will loosen food debris that could be stuck in your braces.
- Using a regular, soft-bristled toothbrush, brush your teeth at the gumline at a 45-degree angle.
- Brush the tops of your brackets, angling downward.
- Brush the bottoms of your brackets, angling upward.
- Brush the wires on both the top and bottom of your mouth.
- Brush each tooth at the gumline, both above and below the brackets. Don’t forget your biting surfaces and the backs of your teeth.
- Rinse well.
Flossing with Braces
Flossing can be hard enough without braces. Add in all those wires and brackets, and there’s a lot to navigate. Thankfully, modern dentistry has come up with some cool gadgets to help. Floss threaders allow you to floss around the wires and between your teeth despite brackets sticking out, and water flossers can irrigate your gums and between your teeth, helping to loosen food and debris off your braces. If you do decide to use a water flosser, make sure you still floss with regular dental floss, as this is not designed to replace dental floss completely.
Remember, brushing and flossing can be a bit harder with braces, however it is extremely important that you do so. You can still get cavities, decalcification, and gum disease while wearing braces, so it’s vital that you keep your teeth and gums clean.
Furthermore, because of their nature, you will likely need to brush and floss more frequently with braces, so be prepared by carrying a travel kit with a toothbrush, toothpaste, dental floss, floss threaders, and braces brushes wherever you go.
About Our Practice
At Allen Orthodontics, our team works together to help provide patients of all ages with healthy, beautiful smiles. Whether you’re looking for invisible braces (they can be very hard to see!) or interested in traditional braces, we have the solution to help give you your most gorgeous grin yet!
To schedule an appointment for braces, please visit our website or call us today at 972-727-1153.