Braces offer the chance to get the good teeth you deserve, but there is a lot of work involved to avoid more dental issues. One of the biggest issues can be poor oral hygiene with braces.
Poor oral hygiene can lead to issues with your dental braces, teeth damage, costly trips to your dentist, and even severe health issues. However, the good news is that there are several ways you can avoid poor oral hygiene and stay on track with your teeth straightening plan.
Read on to learn the best ways to avoid poor oral hygiene with braces.
Table of Contents
Use Floss for Braces
It is estimated that around 20% of Americans never floss. However, you are even more susceptible to plaque build-up with braces. The good news is that there are different tools to aid teeth cleaning, such as floss for braces.
Floss for braces helps ensure you clean difficult-to-reach areas with less risk of breaking your dental braces. They are specifically designed to make cleaning easy.
Avoid Certain Foods
When you get your dental braces there will be a list of foods to avoid. These foods include anything too hard or sticky, as they can quickly break wires or loosen brackets. It will take longer to achieve the straight teeth you desire, and it can cause you discomfort.
Certain drinks such as sodas and coffee should also be avoided as they can stain your teeth. Once you complete your teeth straightening consider teeth whitening to show off your hard work.
Brush Your Teeth After Eating
Food can, unfortunately, get stuck in dental braces. It is not good enough to just check your teeth in the mirror. You need to clean your teeth after each meal to reduce the chance of tooth decay and cavities.
Use Oral Hygiene Tools
You can also use oral hygiene tools such as antimicrobial mouth rinse and a tongue scraper to enhance your dental hygiene. These tools help reduce the number of bacteria and debris in your mouth. And you can continue to use these items once you have your braces removed to maintain your good teeth too.
Attend Dental Appointments Regularly
You also need to attend appointments with your orthodontist to avoid poor oral hygiene with braces. They will make sure your braces are doing their job, and they will be able to identify any dental issues quickly.
Do not avoid seeing your orthodontist if you break a bracket or have another issue. The sooner you see them the sooner you can resolve the issue. You will just delay your teeth straightening and add to the cost of braces if you avoid seeing your orthodontist.
Avoid Poor Oral Hygiene With Braces
Braces do not only enhance your smile and increase your confidence. They can also resolve issues such as jaw pain and other dental issues such as overcrowding or overbites. However, do not put in the hard work to get braces then let your oral hygiene decline.
Follow these tips to avoid poor oral hygiene with braces. You will get the great teeth you deserve without delay.
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