5 Simple Solutions to caring for your Braces

Categories: Orthodontics

caring for teeth with bracesSCOTTS VALLEY, SANTA CRUZ, CA

Getting braces can be an exciting time. While some patients may only need to wear their braces for a short while, others may need to receive orthodontic care for several years. Either way, every patient looks forward to the day that their braces are taken off to reveal their perfectly straight teeth. However, to ensure you get the results that you expect, it’s essential to take care of your teeth and gums while wearing braces. So today on the blog, our Scotts Valley dentists share five simple solutions to caring for your braces.

Step 1: Watch what you eat

You already know the importance of nutrition when it comes to overall wellness and oral health, such as limiting your sugar intake. If you have braces, you need to be careful when eating sticky, chewy, or hard foods, all of which could damage the wires and brackets. Avoid caramel, hard candy, taffy, and corn on the cob altogether. When it comes to crunchy produce, cut those fruits and vegetables into bite-sized pieces before snacking.

Step 2: Brush the right way

Brushing your teeth becomes a little more delicate when you have braces. It also arguably becomes even more important because food particles and cavity-causing bacteria can accumulate around those wires and brackets, raising your risk of tooth decay, gingivitis, and spots of discoloration. To brush correctly, hold your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle and then clean around the wires and brackets—starting above the wire and then brushing beneath it. Work your brush on each individual tooth in a gentle circular motion, and don’t forget to clean the backsides of your teeth as well.

Step 3: Don’t forget to floss

Flossing is a key component of an oral hygiene routine, but it’s crucial to remove those food particles that easily get stuck on brackets and wires. Just thread the floss carefully between your braces wire and your teeth. Floss threaders make the process much easier. For a quicker way to clean around your brackets and wires, consider investing in an affordable water flosser to blast away food particles, which makes flossing your teeth easier and less messy.

Step 4: Chew on food only

Do you have a habit of chewing on pencils, biting your fingernails, or crunching ice cubes? Any of these can be harmful to your teeth in general, but when you have braces, these habits can break the wires and brackets. Bottom line—avoid using your teeth to chew on anything other than food, and resist the urge to use your teeth as a convenient pair of scissors!

Step 5: Keep seeing your dentist as scheduled

When you first receive your braces, you’re going to need to return to your dentist every so often to have the braces adjusted. Routine appointments continue throughout the duration of your treatment. During these appointments, our Scotts Valley dentists that offer braces for adults will also monitor developing oral health problems.

Braces for Adults in Scotts Valley, Santa Cruz, and Los Gatos

Braces are more convenient and comfortable than ever. At Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry, we offer discreet braces that use ceramic brackets instead of traditional metallic ones. We can match this ceramic to the color of your teeth, helping the braces blend with your smile. We also offer functional orthodontic treatment. To find out what is best for you or your child, the next step is to schedule your consultation at Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry today by calling (831) 438-4411.

Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry serves the areas of Los Gatos, Scotts Valley, and Santa Cruz in California.