Life with Braces
Life with Braces | Types of Braces | Braces Diagram | Types of Appliances | Retainer Instructions | Patient Care Videos | Palatal Expander
Eating with Braces
For the first few days or so, stick to soft foods. Avoid tough meats, hard breads, and raw vegetables. Before long, you'll be able to bite a cucumber again. But you'll need to protect your orthodontic appliances when you eat for as long as you're wearing braces.
Foods to Avoid
- Chewy foods: bagels, hard rolls, licorice
- Crunchy foods: popcorn, ice, chips
- Sticky foods: caramels, gum
- Hard foods: nuts, candy
- Foods you have to bite into: corn on the cob, apples, carrots
- Chewing on hard things (for example, pens, pencils or fingernails) can damage the braces. Damaged braces will cause treatment to take longer.
General Soreness
When you get your braces on, you may feel general soreness in your mouth and teeth may be tender to biting pressures for up to a week. This can be relieved by rinsing your mouth with a warm saltwater mouthwash. Dissolve one teaspoonful of salt in 8 ounces of warm water, and rinse your mouth vigorously. If the tenderness is severe, take whatever you normally take for headache or similar pain. The lips, cheeks and tongue may also become irritated for one to two weeks as they toughen and become accustomed to the surface of the braces. You can put wax on the braces to lessen this. Well show you how!
Loosening of Teeth
This is to be expected throughout treatment. Don't worry! It's normal. Teeth must loosen first so they can be moved. The teeth will again become rigidly fixed in their new corrected positions.
Loose Wire or Band
Don't be alarmed if a wire or band comes loose. This happens occasionally. If wire protrudes and is irritating, use a blunt instrument (the eraser end of a pencil) and gently push the irritating wire to a more comfortable position. If irritation to the lips or mouth continues, place wax on the wire to reduce the annoyance. Call our office as soon as possible for an appointment to check and repair the appliances. If any piece comes off, save it and bring it with you to the office.
Care of Appliances
To successfully complete your treatment plan takes team effort between Dr. Croft and YOU! The teeth and jaws can only move toward their corrected positions if you consistently wear the elastic bands, headgear or other appliances as prescribed. Damaged appliances lengthen the treatment time.
Brushing and Flossing
Brushing: Step 1
Using a dry brush with a small amount of toothpaste place bristles where gums and teeth meet.
Brushing: Step 2
For 10 seconds on each tooth use circular, vibrating motions around the gum lines.
Brushing: Step 3
Every tooth of both arches should be brushed slowly.
Brushing: Step 4
Brush the lower teeth from the gum line up and the upper teeth from the gum line down. Brush the roof of your mouth and your tongue too!
Flossing: Step 1
Carefully thread unwaxed floss between braces and wire. You may find a floss threader helpful.
Flossing: Step 2
Carefully floss around the braces.
Flossing: Step 3
Carefully floss around the gum areas.
Flossing: Step 4
Carefully floss around each tooth.
