Brushing and Flossing with Braces – Important Now More than Ever
When you are in orthodontic treatment, it’s more important than ever to have an excellent oral care routine. Keeping your teeth healthy will ensure your teeth can move properly and keep your orthodontic treatment on track. In addition to brushing in the morning and at night, you should also brush after every meal.
But we know that brushing and flossing can be trickier when you’re in braces. Those brackets and wires create some difficult spaces to clean! The team at Salem Smiles is here to help you, so follow these tips to keep your mouth as clean and healthy as possible during your treatment.
Brushing with braces:
- Always use a soft-bristled toothbrush, particularly one that has a smaller head, and fluoride toothpaste.
- Position your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle to the gum line and use small, circular motions to brush the inside and outside surfaces of the teeth.
- Use shorter back-and-forth motions to brush the chewing surfaces of the teeth.
- Always pay close attention to the areas around the brackets.
Flossing with braces:
- Use a floss threader or special orthodontic floss to make threading the floss under the wires easier.
- Using approximately 18 inches of floss, wrap the floss around your pointer fingers, leaving a bit of floss taut between them.
- Gently glide the floss between two teeth using a back and forth motion.
- Floss the sides of each tooth from all the way to the gum line and slightly below the gumline.
- Repeat this until you’ve flossed each tooth.
It can be helpful to have an on-the-go braces care kit with you in your bag for school and/or work. Pack a travel toothbrush and toothpaste, floss and floss threaders, orthodontic wax, and anything else you need to make caring for your braces while out as easy as possible.
And don’t forget to visit your regular dentist during your treatment. You should maintain all regular appointments to ensure your mouth is as healthy as possible.
