How To Clean Braces

Hi, my name is Doctor Amit Majevadia, and I am the principle dentist here at Prestwood Dental Health Center. I've been practicing for six years and today, we are going to talk to you about how to clean your teeth when you are wearing braces. I think it is important to start off by saying that when you, when you've got braces, when you're going through orthodontic treatment to move your teeth, it's very very important to keep everything as clean as possible.

When you are wearing appliances in the mouth, it is very easy for food and bacteria to get stuck to those appliances and so you have to take extra care in cleaning them. If you are wearing a removable appliance, a removable metal appliance for example, it's a bit easier, that can be removed and brushed with your normal brush and toothpaste. I'd also advise that after meals, they should be removed and rinsed, and you should use some sort of mouthwash ideally.

If however, you are wearing fixed braces, you have an increased chance of food and bacteria getting stuck around the brackets and the wires and therefore, you have an increased chance of having gum disease or tooth decay, so it's very important to use products such as these that can get in between the teeth and products such as these that can be used to brush in and around the metal brackets and the wires. And finally, if you are wearing a clear brace or a clear aligner, it's important that you keep things nice and clean and free from bacteria, however, it's a little bit easier. You can simply remove the aligner, brush your teeth with your normal toothbrush and paste and floss in between, and also clean the aligner inside with normal toothbrush and toothpaste.

Just to summarize, I can't stress enough how important it is to keep your teeth and braces or aligners clean during orthodontic treatment. As I said, it decreases the chance of tooth decay, gum disease, and any stains appearing on the teeth. If you've got any questions or queries, you should always enquire at your dental practice with the dentist or the hygienist.

So that's just some advice on how to keep your teeth clean whilst wearing braces. Thank you. .