Brushing and Flossing

Keep Your Teeth Clean During Orthodontic Treatment

When you have braces, brushing and flossing after every meal is especially important for keeping your teeth and gums healthy throughout your orthodontic treatment. Food particles and plaque can easily collect around brackets and wires, making thorough daily cleaning essential for maintaining good oral health.

Choosing the right dental products can also make caring for your teeth and braces easier. If you need help selecting the best toothbrush, toothpaste, or dental floss for your needs, please ask us. Our team can recommend the right products to help keep your teeth, gums, and orthodontic appliance clean and healthy.

brushing with braces

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 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 of your teeth. If you find that your floss is not removing all of the food particles between your teeth and around your braces, ask us about a water flosser!