You’ve got braces, and now you have to keep them clean. Brushing your teeth was easy, but now wires and brackets cover them. We bet you’re wondering, “How do I brush with braces with all this stuff on my teeth?” 

At Petrous Orthodontics, we want your braces treatment to be a smashing success! You can make that happen by cleaning the braces and teeth daily. Here are some tips on how to clean dental braces. 

Tip 1: How to Brush Your Teeth With Braces

You’ve been brushing your teeth for years, so you know how to do it, right? We have a few tips for how to update your brushing technique now that you have braces:

• Rinse your mouth with water first to remove some loose food particles.
• Rinse your toothbrush with hot water to clear any food particles.
• Place your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle to your gum.
• Gently move the brush back and forth in short strokes. Be sure to brush between the wiring and the teeth. You also want to brush your teeth's outer, inner, and chewing surfaces.
• Brush gently in a circular motion, making sure you brush all the way to the gum line.
• Use the tip of your brush for the inner surface of your front teeth.
• Brush your tongue to remove bacteria and keep your breath fresh.

These methods work with or without braces. The bristles of your toothbrush will move around the brackets and clean the plaque and food particles in all those nooks and crannies. So, if this is how you brush, keep doing it! You’re doing great!

Tip 2: How Many Times Should I Brush My Teeth With Braces?

We’ve seen a lot of differing opinions out there about how many times you should brush your teeth with braces. 

We recommend you brush your teeth at least four times a day:

• In the morning, after breakfast
• After lunch or right after school
• After dinner
• At bedtime

Brushing after every meal is crucial for brace wearers. Food particles easily get stuck in braces, leading to plaque, tooth decay, and gum disease. Neglecting this may cause treatment delays and dental issues.

How long should you brush your teeth with braces? We recommend you brush for at least 2-3 minutes at a time. Take the time to brush all of your teeth and gums thoroughly.

A lack of brushing can also lead to white spots on your teeth, called decalcification or demineralization. This can happen particularly around the brackets. That’s because the acids in plaque destroy the minerals in your enamel, your tooth’s protective outer shell. 

Decalcification damages enamel, and once that damage happens, it's hard to fix. Whitening your teeth after braces might help, but those white spots are usually permanent. That's why it's crucial to brush regularly with braces.

The sooner you can brush after meals and snacks, the better it will be for your teeth and braces. If you can't brush immediately, rinse your mouth with water to remove food particles around your braces until you can brush.

Tip 3: How to Floss Your Teeth With Braces

Many people brush their teeth regularly but don’t often floss as regularly. You should floss every day! Flossing and brushing properly with braces  is especially important!

Is there a braces floss or floss picks for braces? Not really. You can use the same dental floss you’ve always used to floss your braces. The trick is getting over or under the archwire to floss properly. 

Some people do find that a floss threader helps them floss with braces. A floss threader is a simple tool resembling a plastic needle with a large eye. Thread regular dental floss through it, slide under the archwire, and easily floss between your teeth for effective cleaning.

Here are some steps on how to floss with braces:

• Using a piece of floss about 18 inches long, carefully thread the end between braces and wire. You may find a floss threader helpful.
• Thread the floss under the archwire.
• Remove the threader.
• Floss each side of each tooth.
• Floss carefully around the gums.
• Pull the floss out of the space with one hand as you release the floss with your other hand.
• Repeat this method between all of your teeth.

Don’t floss too hard. You don’t want to irritate your gums and make them bleed. Gentle flossing will still get the plaque out. 

Tip 4: No Whitening With Braces

We recommend you brush with good fluoride toothpaste, but we strongly recommend you don’t use anything that says “whitening” on it. 

“Why can’t I use a whitening toothpaste with braces?” Your teeth have braces securely bonded to them, and avoiding anything that could compromise this bond is crucial. That includes the whitening agents in toothpaste and teeth whiteners. 

Whitening while you have braces can also create a staining effect on your teeth. We’re talking little yellow squares in the middle of every tooth. We know you don’t want that! 

If you're concerned about the color of your teeth, you can always celebrate your new smile post braces with a whitening treatment.

Tip 5: Using Water Flossers and Mouthwash With Braces

Can you do anything more to keep your teeth clean with braces? Absolutely! Many patients use water flossers to get food particles out from around brackets and wires. They help remove food particles and plaque from your teeth between flossings. 

This is important to remember: Water flossers should never replace using dental floss. They don’t have the scrubbing power that good, old-fashioned dental floss has on your teeth. So use water flossers as an enhancement, NOT as a replacement. 

Another great tool in your clean teeth arsenal is mouthwash. While it’s no substitute for brushing, it can help rinse away plaque and food particles between brushings. Fluoride mouthwash can provide added protection for your enamel. And, of course, you get that fresh, minty breath!

These options are useful but can't replace brushing and flossing with braces for keeping teeth healthy and strong.

Conclusion

Brushing and flossing are important anytime, but they’re especially important with braces. Brushing and flossing with braces can be challenging, but simple tools like floss threaders and mouthwash can help. Building strong oral hygiene routines and sticking to them will make your smile look extra awesome when you get your braces off. The work is so worth it, and we're here to help when you need us! We’re here for you if you have any questions about your braces or oral health. You can schedule an appointment to see us if you think you have a problem with your braces. Petrous Orthodontics has your back!