Oral hygiene, or keeping your teeth and mouth clean, is more important then ever when wearing braces! Here are some guidelines to ensure your teeth stay healthy and beautiful during treatment:
- Brush your teeth every time you eat - this includes meals and snacks
- When brushing isn't possible, it's important to remove food from your braces by:
- Vigorously swishing with water
- Chewing a small piece of sugar-free gum
- Brush with a fluoridated toothpaste and clean the front of your brackets as well as above, below and between them. Be sure to brush your gums!
- Use the Proxy Brush/Interdental Brush (Christmas tree shaped) to clean under the wire and against the sides of brackets
- Floss once a day to clean between teeth
- Powered brushes are great for orthodontic patients! Many varieties are available and vary greatly in price. Please ask Dr. Buren or Dr. Loucks for recommendations.
- Use the provided fluoride gel as directed by the doctors, which is usually twice per day for most patients. After brushing and flossing, rinse your mouth with water. Brush a small amount of gel onto your teeth and braces. You may spit out any extra gel in your mouth but DO NOT RINSE WITH WATER OR EAT/DRINK ANYTHING FOR AT LEAST 30 MINUTES! It is ideal to leave the gel on the teeth overnight if you are able to tolerate the taste and it does not upset your stomach.
- A good cleaning session should last at least 4-5 minutes
White Spots and Diet
Enamel decalcification, or a white spot stain, is the first stage in the development of cavities. While cleaning your teeth is very important in protecting them from cavities, so are the types of foods and drinks you consume. The bacteria that live in our mouths eat all of the foods that we eat. They then produce acid which can dissolve, or eat away at, your teeth creating holes or "cavities."
When we eat foods/drinks that contain a lot of sugar, the bacteria are able to produce more acid and do more damage. Also, when we drink beverages that are very acidic, we help the bacteria by damaging our teeth directly! This is why foods high in sugar (candy, sugared cereals, etc.) are dangerous for our teeth when eaten too frequently. Since soda pops are extremely high in sugar AND acid, they are doubly bad news! Even drinks that appear to be nutritious (sports drinks, fruit juices and energy drinks) often contain just as much sugar and acid as soda pop and are just as damaging!
It is important to use caution when eating foods/drinks high in sugar or acid and we offer these recommendations:
- Limit intake of sugary snacks
- If you must drink soda pop, limit intake to once a day and drink it with a meal. If not consumed with a meal, be sure to drink it quickly (less than 30 minutes)
- Never sip on sugary/acidic drinks over a long period of time (greater than 30 minutes)
- Use a straw when drinking sugary/acidic drinks to decrease contact with teeth
- Brush after every meal and snack
