Life with Braces in Philadelphia and Bensalem, PA

Braces from the practice of Harold Slutsky, DMD, PC are a great way to improve your smile, your health, and your self-esteem. However, while you have braces, you’ll need to take special care of them and your teeth to ensure the best outcome. Dr. Slutsky and our team want your orthodontic treatment to be a success!

Brushing and Flossing with Braces

Excellent oral hygiene is essential and must be practiced throughout treatment. Braces DO NOT cause cavities, but poor oral hygiene DOES. Do not allow poor oral hygiene to result in poor tissue response during treatment.

To help ensure your oral health during orthodontic treatment, we place sealants on the teeth to help prevent white marks, free of charge. While this is helpful, nothing replaces good brushing and flossing to help make sure the teeth remain healthy!

You must brush four times per day: after breakfast, after lunch, after dinner, and before going to sleep. Pay special attention to the area along the gum line.

When you start treatment in our office, we will give you a special toothbrush designed for braces to remove the food from around the braces. The toothbrush has an attachment called a proxy brush to remove food from between the teeth.

Be sure that your toothbrush has soft bristles and use the prescribed Prevident 5000 toothpaste as a fluoride supplement. This will help keep your teeth strong while you wear braces. Brush with this once daily as directed on the label. Use regular toothpaste that does not whiten teeth (e.g. Crest or Colgate) the other times you brush every day. Floss every night as instructed by our office.

If this seems overwhelming—don't stress too much. We will teach you how to brush and floss properly while wearing braces after your appliances are placed, and we're always here to answer your questions.

Eating with Braces

We recommend a cold, soft diet for the first day or two when you have braces. Foods such as yogurt, applesauce, and pudding should be comfortable to eat. After a day or two, you can return to a more normal diet.

It is important to avoid sticky foods, such as chewing gum and caramel candy, since these foods can cause the braces to loosen. It is also a good idea to avoid biting into hard foods with braces. For example, if you want to eat a chicken wing, first cut the meat off the bone, so that you don't accidentally bite into the bone and break the braces. Most other foods are fine to eat!

 

Dealing with Discomfort

Sometimes, the teeth can be sore for several days after we adjust your braces. If necessary, you can take Tylenol to alleviate the discomfort. If part of the braces break, call the office for an extra visit. We will either fix the broken brace or make you comfortable and schedule an appointment for you to return and get it fixed. We also will give you orthodontic wax in case something is sharp or poking until you can return to the office.

Call our Philadelphia or Bensalem, PA orthodontic office if you have any questions about your orthodontic treatment. Dr. Slutsky and our team are here to assist you in every way possible!