Living With Braces: Everything You Need to Know

After getting new braces from Ocean Blue Orthodontics, you might have some questions. Our Bay Shore, New York, team can help! From providing practical tips on maintaining oral hygiene to addressing common issues that may arise during your orthodontic journey, we can ensure your experience is as comfortable and rewarding as possible. Let's delve into the essential aspects of living with braces.

Eating With Braces

What can you eat? Let's talk about what you shouldn't eat! For the first day 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 because damaged braces will cause treatment to take longer. Chewing on hard items like pens, pencils, or fingernails can damage the braces. Additionally, you should avoid eating:

• 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

General Soreness in Mouth and Teeth

When you get your dental braces on, you may feel general soreness in your mouth and your teeth may be tender to biting pressures for three to five days. This can be relieved by rinsing your mouth with a warm saltwater mouthwash. Dissolve one teaspoonful of salt in eight ounces of warm water and rinse your mouth vigorously. If the tenderness is severe, take aspirin or 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. We'll show you how!

Loosening of Teeth

Loosening of teeth 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.

Wearing Orthodontic Appliances

To successfully complete the treatment plan, the patient must work together with the orthodontist. The teeth and jaws can only move toward their corrected positions if the patient consistently wears the rubber bands, headgear, or other appliances as prescribed. Damaged appliances lengthen the treatment time.

Brushing and Flossing With Braces

When you have braces, it's important to brush and floss after every meal to keep your teeth and gums healthy throughout your orthodontic treatment. If you need help choosing the right toothbrush, toothpaste, and dental floss, please ask us and we can help you choose the right products for your teeth and your appliance.

Brushing With Braces

Brush your teeth for two minutes after every meal with a soft-bristled, small-headed toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste. As an alternative, you can use a powered toothbrush to increase your brushing effectiveness. Brush the outside and inside surfaces of your teeth using small, gentle, circular motions while positioning the head of the toothbrush at a 45-degree angle to the gum line. Brush your teeth’s chewing surfaces and the inside surface of your front teeth using short, gentle, back-and-forth motions. Pay close attention to the areas around your brackets or other appliances.

Flossing With Braces

Flossing after every meal will help keep your teeth and braces clean, which will also help keep your treatment time on track. To floss with braces, use a floss threader or special orthodontic floss to thread the floss behind each wire. Wrap the ends of the floss around your pointer fingers of both hands, leaving a few inches of taut floss between them. Gently slide the floss between each set of teeth using a back-and-forth motion. Floss the sides of each tooth beneath the gum line to remove plaque and food particles. Repeat this process until you’ve flossed all your teeth. If you find that your floss is not removing all the food particles between your teeth and around your braces, ask us about a water flosser!

Loose and Uncomfortable Appliance Parts

You might be surprised to learn that you may be able to solve many problems yourself temporarily until you can get to our office. If there is a loose piece that you can remove, put it in a plastic bag or envelope and bring it with you to your next appointment. After alleviating your discomfort, you should still call our office as soon as possible to schedule a time to repair the problem. Allowing your appliance to remain damaged for an extended period may result in disruptions to your treatment plan.

The following problems can have quick resolutions:

Headgear Problems

Sometimes discomfort is caused by not wearing the headgear as instructed by your orthodontist. Please refer to the instructions provided by your orthodontist. If the facebow (metal piece) is bent, please call our office for assistance. The headgear should hurt less the more it's worn, so be sure you get in the prescribed number of hours.

Loose Appliance

If your appliance is poking you, place wax on the offending part.

Loose Bracket

If your bracket or band is still attached to the wire, you should leave it in place and put wax on it if needed for comfort. If the bracket or band can be removed easily, place it in an envelope and save it to bring to your next appointment.

Loose wire

Using a pair of tweezers or needle-nosed pliers, try to put your wire back into place. It is okay to use a piece of floss to tie the wire into place by tying the floss around the bracket in place of the missing colored o-ring. If you cannot put the wire into a comfortable position, and covering the end with wax doesn't help, as a last resort use a small fingernail clipper to clip the wire behind the last tooth to which it is securely fastened. If the end of the wire is still sharp, place wax on it.

Poking Wire

If wire protrudes and is irritating, use a blunt instrument (back of a spoon or the eraser end of a pencil) and carefully, gently push the irritating wire under the archwire. The goal is to simply get it out of the way. If irritation to the lips or mouth continues, place wax or wet cotton on the wire to reduce the annoyance.

Playing Sports With Braces

If you play sports, consult us for special precautions. A protective mouthguard is advised for playing contact sports. In case of any accident involving the face, check your mouth and the appliances immediately. If teeth are loosened or the appliances are damaged, immediately call us for an appointment. In the meantime, treat your discomfort as you would treat any general soreness.

Emergency Orthodontic Care

True orthodontic emergencies are rare, but when they occur, we are available to you. Generally, you should call our office when you experience severe pain or have a painful appliance problem and can't take care of it yourself. We can schedule an appointment to resolve the problem.

Wearing a Retainer or Expander

Ensure that your retainer or expander lasts as long as possible by following the instructions below.

Retainer Instructions

• Wear your retainers full time, until the doctor instructs otherwise.
• Take your retainers out when eating and always put retainers in their case! Most appliances are lost in school lunchrooms and restaurants.
• Clean your retainers thoroughly once a day with a toothbrush, toothpaste, and warm but not hot water. Brushing retainers removes the plaque and eliminates odors. Efferdent or other orthodontic appliance cleaners can be used, but do not take the place of brushing.
• When retainers are not in your mouth, they should always be in a retainer case. Pets love to chew on them!
• Initially, you may find it difficult to speak. Practice speaking, reading, or singing out loud to get used to them faster.
• Retainers are breakable, so treat them with care. If retainers are lost or broken call us immediately.
• If you have any questions or concerns about your retainers, or your retainers need adjusting, call us. Do not try to adjust them yourself.
• Always bring your retainers to your appointments.
• Retainer replacement is expensive. With proper care, they will last for many years!
• Remove retainers when swimming.
• Keep retainers away from hot water, hot car dashboards, pockets, washing machines, and napkins.

Removable Expander Instructions

• Wear your expander all the time. That means all day, during meals, and while sleeping. Remove your expander only to brush your teeth. Brush your expander at least twice a day with a toothbrush and toothpaste.

Fixed Expander Instructions

• Turn your expansion screws as instructed. Insert the key into the hole and turn toward the arrow.
• If you are unable to keep your scheduled appointment, stop turning the expander.

Transform Your Smile

Each step, each adjustment, and each care routine contribute to your smile’s transformation. Trust the process, stay committed to the guidelines, and soon you'll be unveiling a confident smile. If you have any additional questions about braces, contact Ocean Blue Orthodontics today so our Bay Shore, NY, team can help you.