How do I care for my braces? Serving Layton, UT & surrounding areas

Overall Braces Care

Congratulations on your new braces! We are excited to get you on the road to a more healthy and beautiful smile. Part of achieving the ideal results is taking care of your braces. We are going to give you some tips and tricks to help you care for your braces.

Brushing

• 2x daily for 2 minutes
• Brush in small circles and angle your toothbrush so that you can clean all the small ridges on your brackets.

Flossing 

Flossing is very important and should be done each night. This will help keep your gums happy and healthy. There are two great tools you can use to effectively floss with braces.

Floss Fish:

Glide Threader Floss:

Eating

Try and avoid anything that is hard or sticky. When patients eat anything that is hard or sticky it is possible for brackets to break off.  The video below will show you some of the foods you should avoid or that you should cut into small pieces before eating.

Loose or broken brackets

If a bracket breaks off and is still attached to the wire, and you cannot get it off easily, secure the bracket onto the wire with wax. Call our office for an appointment and make sure to bring that bracket with you. This generally can be done during our in-office hours. However, if you need to be made comfortable due to a poking wire that resulted from the broken bracket we can get you in for an emergency visit.

Loose wire

If a wire comes loose, you may use tweezers to try and get the wire back into place, and then secure it with a piece of wax. Be sure and give our office a call so that we can make you comfortable.

Poking wire

If you have a poking wire wax is always a great go to for relieving discomfort until you can get into the office. However, if the pokey wire is a steel wire wrapped around the bracket, then you can use a pencil eraser to push the wire down and out of the way.

Sores

If you get a sore in your mouth due to the braces first try and put a small piece of wax on the rough area that is causing the sore. If the sore continues to hurt try using an oral pain reliever such as ORABASE or BRACE RELIEF. Simply put the paste on a cotton swab or your fingertip and then gently dab onto the site of irritation. Allow it to sit for one minute and then spit it out. You may use it up to three times a day.

Swallowing Braces or Appliances

Swallowing braces or other appliances used during orthodontic treatment rarely occurs. This is because the braces and bands are generally still attached to the wire if they become loosened from the tooth. However, if it does occur call our office immediately so that we can instruct you from that point forward. Fortunately, the braces and rubber bands used for orthodontic treatment are quite small so the patient will usually pass them without difficulty.

Athletics

If you play sports we recommend that you wear some sort of mouth guard to protect your braces. Ask us at  your appointment and we will show you what an orthodontic mouth guard looks like. They are available in the office and in most retail stores. They will help to prevent many orthodontic emergencies while you’re in the game.

Bite Turbos

Bite turbos are used when someone has a deep bite. They help prevent the top teeth from biting off the brackets on the lower teeth.

What to expect

• The back teeth (molars) may not come together well. This may make it difficult to chew for the first few days. Soft foods may be easier to eat at first.
• The tongue may become a bit sore. Practice swallowing a few sips of water with the tongue away from the turbos to help the tongue find a more comfortable spot in the mouth.
• Because of biting forces, 1 or 2 of the turbos may come off the tooth. Call our office and we will be glad to replace them.