Dental braces are frequently used to correct teeth alignment. Many individuals discover their teeth aren't properly aligned when they try to take a selfie, but the effect on your grin is far from the only effect of misaligned teeth. Teeth misalignment can also result in an overbite, TMJ, and other jaw problems. Wearing braces is a sensible method to prevent problems from occurring.
However, there is one minor issue with braces. How can you maintain your teeth white and clean while wearing them?
Prevent Teeth Staining While Using Braces
Even if you intend to have your teeth professionally whitened, you must clean in and around your braces multiple times per day to the best of your ability. Your braces can be an impediment, but nothing a little diligence and elbow grease can't fix.
Rinsing Your Mouth
Rinse your mouth thoroughly with water after eating or drinking anything, especially anything sugary or acidic. It not only benefits your teeth, but it also cleans your braces and removes plaque-causing particles from them. Even if you can't brush straight away, make a point of doing so.
Floss More Than Ever
Flossing is always recommended. With braces, you should floss more. To add further detail, target the archwires specifically and use a floss threader.
In fact, if whitening is your aim, it wouldn't be a terrible idea to avoid sugary and acidic meals totally while wearing braces. This will limit any discoloration that may arise and make it easier when you go to have your teeth whitened.
Whitening Your Teeth While Wearing Braces Is Complicated
It's not a minor issue. You're still eating three square meals a day while wearing braces, but the plaque and debris from those meals may become entangled in their brackets and wires. This might damage or discolor your teeth and gums over time.
While wearing braces, the regular dental hygiene requirements apply, but you won't be able to wash your teeth uniformly. Even if you clean your teeth thoroughly, there will be a color mismatch between the teeth that aren't covered by braces and the teeth that are.
A similar issue exists if you wish to aggressively whiten your teeth and improve your smile. That's why orthodontists have historically advised clients who wish to whiten their teeth to wait until their braces are removed. The bleaching compounds used during extreme whitening were thought to weaken the braces' adhesion to your teeth.
Whitening Options While Wearing Braces
Over-the-Counter Whitening Products
While the majority of individuals desire a pearly white smile right now, consider twice before purchasing an over-the-counter whitening treatment. Some of them, such as whitening toothpaste, will at the very least be beneficial, but the bleaching ingredients in some of them might harm your teeth and gums if you are not careful.
Assuming you've done everything possible to keep your teeth clean and discolored, the next step is to ask your orthodontist about whitening procedures that can be used while you're wearing braces. The type of braces you have will determine this.
Safe Whitening Options Provided by Dentists
Dentists use strong bleaching solutions to whiten your teeth. They are more expensive than over-the-counter remedies, but they have also been shown to work and work well. They can be utilized prior to the removal of your braces.
Two to three 40-minute bleaching treatments with a 35% hydrogen peroxide solution, for example, have been demonstrated to be particularly effective at whitening bracketed teeth. This is far more efficient than waiting for your braces to be removed since it allows you to align and whiten your teeth at the same time without sacrificing one or the other. That was not always the case in prior years.
