Now that you have your braces, what do you need to know?
Take Care of Your Braces and Other Appliances
It’s important for you to know how to properly take care of your braces throughout orthodontic treatment. Breaking appliances, brackets, and wires can increase your treatment time, so be careful not to eat anything hard or crunchy. Don’t chew on non-food items (clothing, pencils, water bottles, etc.). Your teeth and jaw can only move into their correct positions if you consistently come to appointments, and follow the instructions we give you in the office, including wearing rubber bands and brushing and flossing your teeth.
Eating with Braces
You need to avoid hard foods that could break brackets, and sticky foods to avoid having food get caught around the braces where it’s harder to clean. Don't worry, it’s temporary! Your new patient folder will have more examples of foods to avoid with braces.
Foods to avoid with braces:
- Hard foods – chewing ice, hard pretzels, hard rolls, hard nuts
- Chewy and sticky foods —bubble gum, gummies, caramels
- Hard and sticky both — suckers, Tootsie Rolls, Starburst, Jolly Ranchers
Foods to cut before eating:
- Raw carrots into bite sized pieces
- Apples into slices
- Corn off the cob
- Meat off the bone
Be careful with:
- Thinner chips (like corn chips, tortilla chips)
- Popcorn – one or two pieces at a time is okay, a handful is too much
Soreness Caused from Braces and Appliances
When you first get your braces, you may notice that your teeth and mouth feel a little tender or sore. This is perfectly normal and usually does not last more than a day or two.
Though it sounds counterintuitive, chewing helps break up the pressure in your gums. If you’re tender, softer foods like scrambled eggs or macaroni and cheese can help because they provide enough firmness to chew on, but don’t need to be fully chewed to swallow. We also recommend chewing sugar free gum, it won’t stick to your braces and helps keep your teeth a little cleaner. If you are very sore, you can take an over-the-counter pain reliever, like acetaminophen, or an anti-inflammatory such as ibuprofen.
It is also not uncommon for your lips, cheeks, and tongue to become irritated as they become used to the braces. The self-ligating brackets we use for comprehensive treatment are smoother and more comfortable than traditional braces. We will provide wax when you start treatment, which can help smooth out the surface of the brackets so your mouth is less irritated. You can also use wax if a wire is poking out of the back of your braces. If you ever need more, you can take some at your next visit, or stop in the office to pick some up.
Loose Teeth
If your teeth begin feeling a little loose, don't worry, this is normal. As your teeth move, it loosens the ligaments that hold the teeth in place. They should feel more stable pretty quickly!
Playing Musical Instruments with Braces
Playing a musical instrument while you’re in treatment is not a problem! If you play a wind or brass instrument, it may take some time to adjust to playing with braces on.
Playing Sports with Braces
You can still play sports while you’re in treatment. Most sports won’t require a mouthguard. If you play a contact sport – including basketball and soccer – we recommend a mouthguard to protect your teeth and your appliances. You’ll want to purchase a no-boil for-braces mouthguard. They are available at sporting goods stores or online.
Emergencies
If you have trauma to the mouth, please contact our office right away so we can see you. Instructions for emergencies while the office is closed will be in your new patient folder.
