The braces offered by your orthodontist, Dr. Shabbir Adenwalla and Inayat Ashai, are designed to apply progressive tension to the periodontal ligaments anchoring your teeth in their sockets. Through the course of successive adjustment sessions, this will move your teeth into the ideal positions needed for a healthier mouth and a more appealing smile. It’s important to note that if your braces are damaged in any way, or if you develop chronic issues with tooth decay, it could potentially increase your treatment time.
It’s important to clean in and around your braces and between your teeth each day. This starts by brushing your teeth twice a day with a soft-bristled toothbrush and abrasive toothpaste. You should then floss your teeth each night after brushing.
If you’re struggling to clean a few of the hard-to-reach areas around your braces, you might want to try using one or two special oral hygiene tools. Small interdental brushes with angled heads are great for brushing small contours and removing food particles from around bands or spacers. If wires or other hardware are making it hard to floss down into the gumline, you could try using a special floss threader loaded with waxed dental floss.
It’s also a good idea to abstain from eating sticky foods and chewing gum. This can easily bend wires, loosen brackets, or pull a spacer out. Your braces can also be damaged and bent by crunching hard and chewy foods. This also extends to bad habits like chewing on hard objects, like pencils and pens.
When your braces were initially installed, your orthodontist gave you a piece of special orthodontic wax. If some piece of hardware breaks loose and a sharp point is threatening to puncture your cheek or gums, you can secure it inside the orthodontic wax that was given to you. If you don’t have the wax readily available, you can make due with a pencil eraser. With your mouth adequately protected, you can then contact our clinic to seek repair.
If you have questions or concerns about how to maintain your braces in Sandusky, OH, you can always call A&A Orthodontics at to seek additional advice.