How to take care of your braces.

Brushing:

• Brush with a soft bristle brush.
• It is important to brush after every meal. If you cannot brush right away, rinse well with water.
• Place bristles where gums and teeth meet.
• Use circular motions around the gums, 10 seconds on each tooth.
• Brush slowly, each arch separately, every tooth.
• Brush the lower teeth up and the upper teeth down.
• Brush your tongue and the roof of your mouth too!

Flossing:

• It is important to floss nightly after brushing to remove plaque your toothbrush misses.
• Use a floss threader between gums and braces.
• Concentrate on the danger zone: the space between the brackets and the gums.
• Carefully pull unwaxed floss between the wire and braces.
• Floss carefully around the braces, gum area, and each tooth.

Common Issues:

Loose/Broken Bracket

• It’s not atypical to have 1 or 2 loose brackets during orthodontic treatment, if this happens place some wax on the bracket to avoid it rubbing your cheeks.

Pokey Archwire

• Clip the broken/pokey wire with fingernail clippers or place a pea-sized amount of wax on the area that’s rubbing your cheek.

Soreness

• Take what you would normally take for a headache (Tylenol, Advil, etc.) Soreness from braces peaks 24 hours after the braces and wires are placed, then will get progressively better over time.

Problem Foods:

• Avoid the following crunchy foods- Hard candy, chips, popcorn, jerky, ice, nuts, corn on the cob, whole raw fruits and vegetables such as apples and carrots.
• Avoid the following sticky foods- Bubble gum, caramel and other sticky candy like starburst and taffy.
• Avoid chewing on hard objects such as pens and pencils.