Brushing and flossing your teeth has always been crucial to oral health, as each task works to remove plaque and bacteria from your teeth. While these can be effective practices with the right technique, general oral care becomes a little more difficult with metal braces in the picture. As such, brushing and flossing become all the more important with braces. The brackets and wires create hard-to-reach spaces throughout your mouth, so the right brushing technique can go a long way.
Considering how important oral hygiene is when braces are thrown into the mix, we’ve compiled a list of tips and tricks to help ensure you’re brushing right. Take a look at how to brush your teeth with braces below!
Tips and Tricks for Brushing
Although these tips are essential for patients with braces, they’re also quite important for everyone in order to improve your cleaning techniques. Take a look at the tips below to ensure you’re brushing your teeth properly and keeping your braces clean.
- Before brushing, rinse your mouth out with water. This will help loosen any food particles so you can brush them away.
- Brush your teeth at a 45-degree angle, making small circular patterns with your brush, rather than going back and forth. This ensure you’re getting over and under each bracket and wire, while also getting the gumline.
- Don’t forget to brush your tongue. The tongue hosts a majority of the bacteria residing in your mouth. If you skip this important area when brushing, those bacteria will make their way to your teeth shortly after.
- Brush slowly and make sure you get every corner and tooth in your mouth.
- Use ADA-approved fluoride toothpaste.
- Brush after every meal. However, since that’s not always an option, keep some soft picks (dental picks) on you for on-the-go cleaning.
- Be diligent! You should brush your teeth twice a day, and be sure to rinse with water or use a dental pick after meals.
When it comes to brushing your teeth properly, brushing techniques aren’t the only thing to worry about. You should always practice the tips above when brushing, but you should also be sure to care for your toothbrush properly.
ToothBrush Care
Brushing your teeth is always effective, yet it’s important to ensure your brush is clean at all times. After you’re finished brushing, it can be easy to leave it on the bathroom counter top. But, this can leave the brush collect bacteria—which will only hinder your efforts. If you follow the steps below and take care of your brush, you will be able to drastically decrease the amount of bacteria on the brush and in your mouth.
- Keep your toothbrush out of the open, as airborne bacteria will ultimately makes its way onto your brush. Consider keeping your brush in a drawer or using a plastic cap when stored on the counter.
- Rinse the brush after every time after using it. This will wash away food particles and left over bacteria.
- Change out your brush every three months. Not only will the bristles be worn down, but bacteria will begin to accumulate on both the bristles and handle.
Need more help ensuring your oral health is up to par throughout treatment? Check out some more resources for patients with braces below:
We hope these tips will help you to get the most out of your brushing efforts and keep teeth clean while undergoing braces treatment.
If you’d like a straighter smile and want to know your options, give Kraus Orthodontics a call today at 469-619-9959. We provide orthodontic care to patients of all ages, and we’re happy to help you achieve the smile of your dreams.