Care of Braces

Cleaning 

It’s extremely important to keep your teeth clean during braces treatment. Brushing your teeth twice daily as well as using interdental brushes/piksters to clean underneath the wire is very important. Poor oral hygiene can cause permanent discolouration and white marks to develop on your teeth. Having braces means you have to be extra cautious!  It can be difficult to detect food and plaque sitting underneath the wire and around the brackets so using plaque disclosing tablets will help show you areas that you need to improve on brushing. The dental team at Michael Woods orthodontics will also ensure optimum oral hygiene is maintained by checking your oral hygiene at every visit and advising you on how to improve.

Eating 

You can still enjoy your favourite foods with braces, however it’s also important to avoid frequent snacking and high sugar foods. As it is more difficult to clean your teeth around the braces, you may be creating an environment that encourages plaque and bacteria to thrive if you don’t maintain a healthy diet. Breaking brackets and bands can slow down your treatment which means some types of food should be avoided throughout the duration of your treatment. Food such as chewy foods (caramel,liquorice), crunchy food (nuts/pretzals) should be avoided. We would also recommend cutting up apples and raw carrots into smaller pieces rather than forcefully biting into it. This will help you achieve the best results in the shortest time possible.