Caring for Braces

Back to school is here! After a fun summer, it is time to get back into our routines. For some of our patients, they will be returning to school for the first time with braces! No need to be worried; these days, it seems braces are pretty much a ‘rite of passage’, so you’ll fit right in. However, we do have some tips to make sure the transition is a smooth and comfortable one:

• Bring a ‘Braces Care Kit’. Pack a toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, wax and lip balm to keep your teeth clean and stay comfortable.
• Make sure you pack braces friendly foods for lunches and snacks. Stay away from the chewy, sticky and hard foods. (After all, no one wants to sit through class with an uncomfortable broken bracket or poking wire).
• Drink plenty of water. Staying hydrated will help prevent the dry, cracked lips that sometimes come along with new braces.
• Always wear a mouth guard when playing contact sports (in gym class or on a team). Getting hit in the mouth hurts, especially when you have braces. Prevent injury and pain by wearing a mouth guard. (When in braces you need a mouth guard that is made to wear with braces. Pick one up at our office or at a sporting goods store).
• If you have a removable retainer or appliance always put it in the case at lunch. NEVER wrap it in a napkin – it can easily get thrown out. We see this happen all of the time.

Dr.Hughes and the team at Lakewood Park Orthodontics know that keeping your teeth clean during orthodontic treatment can be a difficult task –especially when it comes to flossing. Weaving floss behind wires and brackets can be a challenge. This leads many of our patients to ask about the benefits of a water pick and whether or not it could replace flossing.

Some of our patients use a water pick to flush out food and bacteria stuck between their teeth and brackets. The water pick can reach places where floss simply cannot. Water picks are gentle on braces and on gums. They are less likely to cause bleeding for people with sensitive gums. People suffering from gum disease will find water picks effective in their ability to flush out bacteria from inside deep pockets.
Water picks have many benefits, but they are not an effective substitute for flossing. Water picks are not able to remove plaque from the teeth the way floss can. Water picks can rinse some of the sticky bacteria away but floss actually scrapes the bacteria off of the teeth. Although water picks are not a good enough tool on their own they can be used in combination with flossing and brushing to keep your pearly whites clean and healthy.

If you have any questions or concerns about water picks or your oral hygiene routine we encourage you to ask below or call our office.

Dr. Chavez, a colleague of Dr. Hughes, has developed an easy to remember formula to help orthodontic patients remember important information about maintaining good oral hygiene. He calls it the ‘Rule of 5’s’. Dr. Hughes would like to share this clever mnemonic (memory) device with her orthodontic patients.
The ‘Rule of 5’s’
1. There are 5 places to brush: (1) Where the teeth meet the gum lines, In toward the gums; (2) under the wire; (3) on top of the wire; (4) on top of the teeth; (5) in back of the teeth
2.There are 5 times during the day to brush: after breakfast, after lunch or after school, after dinner, after snacks and before bed.
3. Spend 5 minutes brushing each time.
4. At the end of the day, spend an additional 5 minutes to floss and use fluoride rinse.