|
|
|
 Initial Soreness
When you first get your braces on and for a few days after your regular adjustments, you may feel a general soreness in your mouth, and your teeth may be tender to biting pressures. This discomfort can often be relieved by rinsing your mouth with a warm salt-water solution. Dissolve one teaspoonful of salt in 8 ounces of warm water and rinse your mouth vigorously.
If the tenderness is severe, take ibuprofen or acetaminophen or whatever you normally take for a headache or similar pain. The lips, cheeks, and tongue may also become irritated for one to two weeks as they toughen and become accustomed to the surfaces of the braces. You can put wax on the braces to lessen any irritation.
Eating with Braces
Obviously, during those first few days of tenderness, you'll want to stick to eating soft foods. However, once you're feeling back to normal, you'll still need to adjust your eating habits while you're wearing braces. The fact is that braces are fragile things that can be bent, broken, loosened, and otherwise damaged by certain foods. Damaged braces can mean increased treatment time for you. So, to minimize the damage and maximize your treatment, we ask you to comply with the following guidelines.
The general rule is to avoid anything hard, sticky, or sweet.
To give you specific examples, hard foods you should avoid include ice, nuts, popcorn, ribs, pretzels, corn on the cob, toasted bagels, carrots, chips, uncut fruit, jerky, etc.
Foods in the sticky category might include gum, gummy candies, caramels, taffy, jelly beans, Milk Duds, Snickers Bars, Tootsie Rolls, Now and Laters, and anything else you have to peel off the roof of your mouth or pry off your teeth when you eat it.
As for the sweet category, you can pretty much count on it eliminating any of your favorite foods that we haven't already listed. Sorry about that, but it is important to avoid sugary foods because of the decay they can cause. Although you probably don't want to hear it, soda pop is one of the worst culprits. Whenever you do eat anything sweet, please brush your teeth immediately afterward.
Also, while you're in braces, you need to avoid chewing on non-edible hard items, too, including pens, pencils, fingernails, etc.
Loose Wire or Band
Don't be too alarmed if a wire or band does come loose. This happens occasionally. If wire protrudes and is irritating, use a blunt instrument (back of spoon or the eraser end of a pencil) and carefully, gently push the irritating wire under the archwire–simply get it out of the way. If irritation to the lips or mouth continues, place wax or wet cotton on the wire to reduce the annoyance. Call our office as soon as possible for an appointment to check and repair the appliances. If any part of the braces comes off, save it and bring it with you to the office. (See our "Emergency Care" page for more specific information).
Care of Appliances
To successfully complete your treatment, you must work together with Dr. Willes. Your teeth and jaws can only move toward their corrected positions if you consistently wear the rubber bands, headgear or other appliances as prescribed. If you receive a specialized appliance, you will be given specific instructions on its use and care. We just want to remind you that damaged appliances lengthen treatment time.
Loosening of Teeth
This is to be expected throughout treatment. Don't worry! It's normal. Teeth must loosen first so they can be moved. The teeth will again become rigidly fixed in their new, corrected positions.
Brushing
It's more important than ever to brush and floss regularly when you have braces, so the teeth and gums are healthy after orthodontic treatment. Patients who do not keep their teeth clean may require more frequent visits to the dentist for a professional cleaning. Adults who have a history of gum disease should also see a periodontist during orthodontic treatment.
Athletics
If you play sports, it's important that you consult us for special precautions. A protective mouth guard is advised for playing contact sports. In case of any accident involving the face, check your mouth and the appliances immediately. If teeth are loosened or the appliances damaged, phone at once for an appointment. In the meantime, treat your discomfort as you would treat any general soreness.
Back to Top
|
|
|
