You can’t wait for that day when your braces will be removed, and you get that lovely smile back. To receive impressive results when that time comes, you will have to take care of your braces and teeth by brushing them properly and following instructions from your dentist. Brushing your teeth is more complicated when you have braces, and you have to be gentle and take your time. Your brackets can get damaged and wires dislodged if you don’t brush carefully. Let’s explore the ways to brush your teeth while wearing braces.
1. Find the Appropriate Toothbrush
The stiffer the bristles of your toothbrush, the more effective they are in removing plaque from your teeth. When you have braces on, the rules change. You have to use soft bristles for the sake of their safety.
Stiff bristles might bend or push a wire or break a bracket. A soft one will clear away food debris around your braces and prevent your gums from getting irritated.
2. Use the Right Toothpaste
Whitening toothpaste is not recommended when you have braces. One of the leading orthodontics who has helped many in getting braces in San Diego, said that whitening toothpaste could whiten the exposed surfaces and leave the positions where the braces are cemented untouched.
You can, however, use a toothpaste with fluoride to fight cavities but squeeze a small amount on the toothbrush bristles.
3. Don’t Forget to Floss
When you have braces, you should never forget to floss your teeth every day. You will need to floss below the wire and between the teeth.
You can also get a water flosser to shoot off bacteria and loosen food debris at high pressure. Braces catch food debris, and flossing is the most effective way of freeing that debris.
4. Don’t Over-Brush Your Teeth
You already know that it’s important to brush regularly, but brushing your teeth too much is unnecessary. Over-brushing is also known as abrasion, and it can cause sensitive teeth and damage your gums.
Vigorous brushing has been known to wear down the enamel, damage the gums, and lead to other dental problems such as cavities. It can spoil your braces too. You don’t have to scrub your teeth. Instead, brush them in an appropriate manner.
5. Spit and Rinse in the Morning. Spit and don’t Rinse at Night
Every person has a routine, and most people are used to rinsing the remaining foam out of their mouth right after brushing before they go to work. What most don’t know is that you will be doing your teeth a favor by leaving the foam in your mouth at night.
You can spit the foam in your mouth, but don’t wash the remaining fluoride out. You can also follow the same routine while wearing braces to strengthen your teeth.
6. Use the Right Motion
Brush your teeth in the right way. While brushing, move the head of the brush in a small and circular pattern on your teeth as the braces are situated on the center. You will have to brush both above and below the brackets to make sure your teeth and gums are adequately cleaned.
Holding the brush head vertically or parallel to the surface of the teeth might leave some areas below the braces untouched.
7. Get Professional Cleaning
Getting a professional to clean your teeth is one of the ways you can ensure that your teeth and braces are okay. Just like you visit your dentist or dental hygienist to check and clean your teeth when you have no braces, do the same when you have them.
Dental hygienists are trained to clean your teeth including the ones with braces, and they are the best bet when you need a thorough cleaning.
Conclusion
If you or your children have braces, cleaning them should be a priority. Wash them daily and take good care of them. You should also visit your orthodontist’s office frequently to have them check your teeth and braces.
