Deep cleaning your teeth and cleaning around all the small parts of your braces can be difficult. Proper cleaning of your braces will ensure that you avoid staining, tooth decay, and cavities. Thoroughly cleaning braces will save you time on your orthodontic treatment and unnecessary dental procedures. Bailey Orthodontics wants to help our patients properly clean braces while working with our office. Below are some tips that can make cleaning around braces much more manageable. 

1- Flossing

We know flossing can be difficult to use when cleaning braces.  Getting to all the nooks and crannies around your wires, hardware, and brackets can be tricky. Using a floss threader or special orthodontic flossing sticks can make flossing much easier. Water flossers are a great addition to flossing.  They use a small stream of water to help blast out food particles that can lead to cavities or gum irritation. 

2- ADA Accepted Toothpaste

Using the right toothpaste for your teeth, with or without braces, can help improve your enamel and the appearance of your teeth. The American Dental Association approves many kinds of toothpaste that have the right ingredients to help protect your teeth and aid in cleaning braces. Choosing a toothpaste with or without fluoride, one that you enjoy the taste of, and one that will help improve the shine of your teeth are all choices that those with braces need to take into consideration. 

3- Dental Proxy Brush

Using a special brush to clean between wires and small parts can be extremely helpful when dealing with braces. A proxy brush, commonly called a Christmas Tree brush, is just one tool that can help in thoroughly cleaning braces because it is designed to go where your regular toothbrush can’t. Just push the tip into the hard to reach areas around the brackets and rinse the bristles with warm water after cleaning each tooth. 

4- Rubber-Tip Tooth Picks

This dental tool is pretty common in dental offices and can be used to clean the gum line and the tooth. It helps to remove stubborn food particles that may be left behind. This is a great option if you are not able to floss your teeth right away after eating.  Use the rubber-tipped toothpick very carefully to remove food particles and follow with a full rinse of the mouth.

5- Mouthwash

Using mouthwash can help rinse and clean the areas of teeth next to and around your brackets that may need extra attention. We can not see all the bacteria that may be lurking in our mouths, so using mouthwash with fluoride is a great way to kill anything that may be stuck around your brackets. Thoroughly cleaning braces with mouthwash will help prevent discoloration spots, promote gum health and help prevent bad breath. 

6- Gargle Salt Water

Your orthodontist may ask you to do this right after you get your braces to help with the swelling. Gargling salt water will help reduce inflammation and keep your teeth clean. This practice may not need to be implemented in your daily routine, but especially right after you get braces and brushing or flossing might be painful, it can help prevent bacteria build-up. 

7- Eat Braces Safe Foods

When you first get your braces, your orthodontist will talk to you about what foods are best to eat. Eating leafy greens, sugary candies, or popcorn could lead to more small particles getting wedged next to your brackets and wires. Avoiding foods like these may not be ideal, but if you want cleaning your braces to be easier, it may be best to skip them.

Braces With Bailey Orthodontics

Bailey Orthodontics has recently opened a new location in Farmington, UT. This means that we can better serve more patients and help them on their road to a better smile. Our entire staff is dedicated to making patients feel comfortable and understood while receiving care from us. We are efficient with your time and money because we know that fitting orthodontic treatment into your schedule is difficult. When you visit our office, we are timely and always greet you with a smile. Schedule an appointment with our office today! 

Dental anxiety is common in children and adults and can be debilitating when you need dental or orthodontic work done. If your children have anxiety about braces, there are some tips you can use to help calm the stress that comes with orthodontic treatment. 

Bailey Orthodontics helps to monitor your child’s progress even before they need braces. Our team has worked with children and adults with dental anxiety and offers emotional support through our friendly staff and emotional support dog.

1- Choose The Right Orthodontist

Helping your children feel comfortable with something new starts with finding someone who your child can trust and feels safe with. An orthodontist that knows and understands your child’s anxiety about braces will help them to work with the child on overcoming their fears. 

Doing some research about different offices, what they offer, and how the orthodontists have treated other children can help. If your child is not feeling comfortable with their current orthodontist, don’t feel bad about choosing a new one. Expressing your concerns to the orthodontist will help them best treat your child, or understand what methods work best for your child’s needs. 

2- Make Oral Hygiene A Habit At Home

Helping your child to understand the importance of oral hygiene will help them want to take care of their teeth. Encourage your child to brush their teeth twice a day, use fluoride, eat healthy snacks, and drink plenty of water. 

Oral hygiene is always a good habit to have, before and after braces. Good oral hygiene can help eliminate anxiety about braces and more problems that can occur with your teeth. Preventing cavities and visiting a dentist for regular cleanings will help curb some anxiety in patients. 

3- Bring Items Of Comfort To Your Appointment

Children often have items of comfort they love, like stuffed animals, toys, blankets, or books. Bringing these items to the appointment can help keep your children calm and alleviate anxiety about braces. Having an item from home can help remind them they are safe and that their fears are only temporary. 

4- Talk To Others

If you are still looking for an orthodontist that will work with your child, try talking to friends or other people you are close with to recommend orthodontists they have worked with. Speaking to other people can help you get a real feel for how an orthodontist’s office works and how they make their patients feel. 

5- Closely Monitor Their Progress

Monitoring a child’s teeth and oral health progress can help you identify problems before they take over your child’s life. This can also help you prepare for when they may be ready to start orthodontic treatment. 

Bailey Orthodontics offers a 7 & Up Kids Club that can help children prevent cavities, monitor their alignment, and prepare them for when they may need braces. Getting familiar with our office over time will help limit anxiety about braces in children. 

6- Set Realistic Expectations

Telling your children that orthodontic treatment will not be that painful or it won’t last that long is not going to help them overcome their fears. Helping to set realistic expectations and talking your child through what will occur at their appointments can be much more beneficial and help them feel better prepared for their treatment. 

Once your child starts orthodontic treatment, talk to them about how appointments will go, how long you may be at the office, what the orthodontist will be doing, what foods they will have to eat, and some pain that they could experience during braces. 

Trust Bailey Orthodontics

Our orthodontists want to help improve the smiles of all patients with the help of proper treatment. Getting regular dental checkups and seeking orthodontic treatment at the right time can help improve multiple aspects of your physical health. We are committed to being efficient with your time and money and helping you schedule appointments when it is best for you.

Our team provides a friendly office and helps patients with anxiety be able to experience a better smile. Visiting our practice brings health, safety, and smiles. Not only from our patients but from our office staff as well. Contact us to schedule your first appointment today!

Feeling tightness or slight discomfort while wearing Invisalign is normal, but having an improper fit on your clear aligners will not help you straighten your teeth. If your Invisalign doesn’t fit or feels slightly off, there are some steps you can take to improve the tracking of your Invisalign.

Bailey Orthodontics is here to help you with any questions you have about braces, Invisalign, or other issues with your teeth. If your Invisalign doesn’t fit, give our office a call and we would be happy to help.

What Is Tracking?

Tracking is a clinical term used to describe the fit of your clear aligners or Invisalign against your teeth. When there are gaps between your teeth and your aligners, this means that they are not tracking and your teeth will not shift properly. If your aligners are not seated properly over your teeth, there are simple steps you can take to fix them.

1- Minimize The Gap With A Bite Stick

If you visit an orthodontist regularly for your Invisalign, you will have been given or have access to a bite stick or chewies. These tools help you have something to bite down on and slowly force your aligners to fit snugly against your teeth. These bite sticks or chewies can be bitten down on in 5-15 minute increments, several times per day until your aligner seats properly.

2- Check That Your Aligner Isn’t Broken

Another common reason that your Invisalign doesn’t fit or feels uncomfortable to wear properly is that it is cracked or otherwise broken. If there are splits or cracks in your Invisalign, this can cause them to become misaligned. If you find damage, talk to your orthodontist immediately to help refit your trays or see where you may be on your straightening journey.

3- Wear Your Invisalign As Directed

It is recommended that you wear your Invisalign for at least 20 hours a day to see changes in your teeth. Wearing your Invisalign properly also helps them to stay fit to your teeth even between different sets of trays. If your Invisalign doesn’t fit, think about how frequently you have been wearing them. The culprit could be that you are not wearing your aligners enough to get the desired movement before moving on to your next set of trays. 

4- Try Back Tracking

If you have recently switched to a new set of trays that are not fitting well on your teeth, despite your set timeline, your teeth may not be ready to move on to the next phase. Backtracking in Invisalign just means that you go back to your previous set of trays until your teeth fit into the new ones. 

This may seem like you are not making progress, but your teeth often move slowly and have resistance to Invisalign. If your new Invisalign doesn’t fit, or you think your new set of trays is too much for your teeth to handle, talk to your orthodontist about backtracking. 

Why Are My Teeth Taking Longer To Shift?

Everyone’s teeth are different. Your teeth may take longer to adjust or you may have a stubborn tooth that may be taking longer to move than expected, but this does not necessarily mean that your Invisalign isn’t working. Some Invisalign cases are more complex than others and your aligners may take some time to slowly move your teeth into the right position. Be patient with the process, but feel free to reach out to your orthodontist with any concerns you may have along the way.

Try Invisalign With Bailey Orthodontics

Working with our team at Bailey Orthodontics will help you have the best smile possible. Our orthodontists work to provide you with clinical advice and help you determine what alignment option is best for you. We offer Invisalign for ages 7 and up, braces for all ages, two-phase orthodontics, and more to ensure that everyone will have the best oral health and beautiful results from their smile journey.

What sets us apart from other orthodontic offices is our approach to helping our patients feel safe and heard while seeking care with us. We offer our 7 and up kids club, have friendly staff, and our office support dog, Ralphie. We have also been voted as Best Of Northern Utah 2022 and are proud to serve our growing community. Learn more about what we have to offer by reaching out to us by phone or email!