Congratulations on your new braces! Your teeth may begin to feel sore and other places may become tender.

Here are a couple of items to help you care for yourself and your teeth!

  • Take Ibuprofen to help with discomfort.
  • Use wax as needed to smooth things over.
  • Brush your teeth! Hold your toothbrush at an angle when you brush above, below, and between your braces.
  • Floss daily.
  • Poor brushing may leave white spots on your teeth.
  • See your dentist regularly while in orthodontic treatment.

DO NOT:

  • Eat sticky foods: Gum, taffy, Starbursts, caramels, Tootsie Rolls, Milk Duds, Snickers, etc.
  • Eat hard foods: jerky, corn on the cob, ice cubes, etc.
  • Chew on: pens, pencils, and fingernails

Occasionally, a wire may poke. Press a ball of wax over the wire. If a wire has slid, carefully use a blunt object (pencil eraser) to push the wire back in place. If a bracket comes loose, please save the bracket and call our office to schedule time to re-bracket the tooth.