Braces will result in an aesthetically pleasing smile, but it is crucial to ensure that the grin stays in good health. After thinking about how braces will seem, the next thing on your mind is presumably how to brush teeth with braces on. While your braces are constantly working to align your teeth, you should be working just as hard to keep your teeth clean and protected.
Once you have braces on your teeth, cleaning them correctly becomes much more vital than before. To prevent various dental health concerns, it is even more crucial to maintain good oral hygiene. Because food particles may get trapped between brackets and wires while wearing braces, brushing your teeth takes more work when you have braces.
However, if you take a few additional measures and wash your teeth in a certain manner, you may undoubtedly have healthier teeth even while wearing braces. It just takes a little tolerance, effort, and a few easy tactics to achieve success!
To maintain your teeth healthy while wearing braces, you need to understand the essentials. In this article, we will provide you with information on brushing teeth with braces, ensuring that you have a healthy smile.
Take Your Time And Be Patient
First and foremost, it is important to recognize that cleaning and flossing your teeth will take more time. It’s unavoidable if you want to thoroughly clean the area surrounding every bracket. It will take you nearly three times as long to clean your teeth as it does now.
Using Water, Rinse Your Mouth Out
Before brushing your teeth, you should rinse your mouth with water. However, although this may seem strange, it is a simple method of assisting in the loosening of any food particles that have been lodged in your mouth over the day. As a bonus, it conditions your mouth for brushing.
Pick the Proper Toothbrush
A stiff toothbrush may seem like a good idea since removing food particles and grime with braces is difficult. However, braces are fragile, and a stiff-bristled brush might bend or break them.
Picking the right toothbrush is crucial when you want to sustain excellent oral hygiene while you have braces on. To prevent irritating the gums, use a gentler brush, use an electric or sonic toothbrush to clean around braces. Use just the correct amount of pressure so that the brush head can revolve thoroughly and efficiently clean your teeth.
Ensure That Your Toothbrush is Perfectly Placed
Brushing your teeth properly requires effective toothbrush positioning:
- Brush the gum line with a toothbrush angled at a 45-degree angle.
- Angle the toothbrush down to brush the tops of each bracket.
- Brush the bottom of the brackets again, angling the toothbrush up.
Brush in a circular motion with extremely less pressure. Ensure that you have reached every tooth, bracket, main wire, and gumline.
This posture promotes optimal cleaning over the gums and between your braces. In addition, brushing your teeth at a small slant like this makes it easier for your toothbrush to go between your teeth and clean in between the brackets of your brace.
Right Toothpaste And Quantity
Toothpaste foam may obscure plaque and dirt. Instead, begin by cleaning your teeth with a moist toothbrush to clean around the brackets as well as between wires. When you’re done cleaning, apply a pea-sized quantity of toothpaste and proceed as usual.
Choose fluoride-containing toothpaste to prevent cavities. Using a fluoride gel on your teeth every day is a substitute for using fluoride toothpaste. To complete cleaning, rinse with a fluoride solution.
Cleanse Your Tongue
Use the back of your toothbrush to remove any remaining germs from your tongue before you put on your toothbrush cap. Cleaning your tongue reduces infection plaque buildup and keeps your breath fresh all day!
Remember to Floss
Flossing might be difficult with braces. Waxed floss is less prone to get caught in the brackets and shred than unwaxed floss. To make threading the wire easier, you can tie floss to the threader.
Lightly glide the floss up and down between the teeth, then withdraw it. Repeat until you’ve flossed your whole mouth. Avoid snapping the floss – move gently.
If using floss between your braces and teeth is too difficult, you may now purchase specifically designed flossing equipment for persons with braces. Consider a waterpik water flosser. A simple technique to floss using a flow of water.
Refrain From Overbrushing
Overbrushing might be harmful to your teeth’ health. The more you brush, the more likely it is that you’ll end up with sensitive teeth or receding gums. Cleaning too forcefully might also wear down the enamel.
Spend 30 seconds on each side of your mouth: right, left, upper, and lower part. Teeth should be cleaned on both the outer and inner sides. You may not overbrush, so it is best to set a timer of two minutes.
Brush Twice Daily or After Each Meal
Brushing your teeth at least twice a day helps prevent significant issues, including tooth decay, plaque buildup, and mouth infections. Aside from these recommendations, some orthodontists suggest that you wash your teeth after every meal rather than simply twice a day.
In addition, brushing often helps prevent plaque. However, brushing after acidic meals is an exception. Brushing within 30 minutes to an hour after consuming foods like oranges or sports drinks might weaken tooth enamel.
Gargle With Mouthwash at Night
Using mouthwash after brushing your teeth ensures a clean mouth. Mouthwash gets to places your toothbrush can’t. It also helps clean your teeth or braces.
Choose a fluoride mouthwash with anti-cavity properties to help prevent tooth decay and preserve tooth enamel. Give your mouth a quick one-minute rinse with mouthwash to remove any leftover dirt.
Conclusion
We realize that the additional minutes spent on dental hygiene while wearing braces might be time-consuming, but they are well worth it. Consider how beautiful and healthy your smile will be in the not-too-distant future!
