Tips to Floss While Putting On the Braces?

Flossing and cleaning with braces on is crucial for retaining your beautiful smile and maintain proper oral health. When you are on with wires and brackets you can miss certain places (hard-to-reach) during brushing and flossing. But flossing is an indispensible option you can’t avoid. During braces treatment it can consume some more time. 

Now, there are some processes to floss your teeth easily and rapidly which we are going to cover in this post. Regardless of the options, just know about them all at once prior to commence the treatment. You can also consult with the braces dentists in London to opt for the most suitable choice for your condition. 

Follow the below flossing tips to flash your healthy smile in a more confident manner.   

Traditional flossing

This trial-and-error flossing method excellently cleans the plaque and food in-between teeth. However, while having braces the things get quite challenging. Flossing over the braces consume more time. So, prepare yourself to devote 10-15 minutes for flossing the teeth using this technique. Waxed floss is the only tool you can prefer for dealing with the trapped food particles with braces.     

Steps for using traditional floss over braces

• Cut 18-24 inch of the floss. 
• Thread it within the teeth. Take help from the mirror to check its position and movement.
• Wrap the floss ends within the index fingers to handle the floss easily
• Now the floss should be pressed within the 2 teeth for moving it to and fro from both sides of the teeth. U-shape is highly recommended while cleaning the upper teeth. At first proceed towards the gumline and then move towards other teeth.  
• Floss must be removed while unthreading it from backward. Never pop out the floss from the teeth otherwise it can knock the metal wires and brackets accidentally. 
• The processes should be repeated until you are done with every pair of the teeth. 

Oral irrigator or waterpik

Waterpik makes use of the steady water steam for cleaning in-between the teeth with gumline. It has various models with expensive price. Depending on the water steam, 3-5 minutes can be needed for flossing using this unique tool. Certain models of waterpiks are perfect to use during orthodontia. 

Those are stuffed with tapered tips and can clean the brackets and within teeth by following standard tips. During consultation, you can know about some of the mostly available models and its prices along cost of braces in the UK to choose the most affordable yet right one. 

Steps for using waterpik for flossing

• Water reservoir machine should be filled with water by pouring mouthwash into it to enhance its antibacterial properties. 
• Tapered tip should be inserted in this water flosser and press to check that water is flowing perfectly within it so that it works perfectly while maintaining the water pressure as well. 
• By leaning over sink place the flosser tip into the mouth.
• Turn on the flosser and close the lips so that it don’t splash out from the mouth. Let the water to drain from the mouth during flossing.
• Let the water stream within the gumline within each tooth. 

Gently, brushing is also good for loosening the trapped food debris and particles. Then, spray within the gumline and teeth to repeat the procedure. Once the process is over empty you reservoir and make sure to dry the tip of the flosser. Store it in an enclosed container for the protection of the tip.  

Floss threader

As indispensible tool, the speed of typical flossing method can be accelerated with the use of floss threader. This plastic and small tool assists in pulling out the floss through the brace wire smoothly. Floss threader will take some time for your oral care routine and you can get it from any pharmacy and supermarket nearest you.  

Steps for using floss threader for flossing

• At first, pull the 18-24 inch of waxed floss within the floss threader’s eyes.
• Now the plastic needle point should be inserted within braces wires and floss within while holding the threader in a hand. 
• Then press the floss in-between the teeth to slide to and fro. U shape must be made while dealing with the upper jaw teeth. At first you should go to the upwards and then downwards for effective cleaning.
• Pull out the floss from the teeth and floss from the backside of the braces.
• Rethread might be necessary for the continuation of the process till next teeth set. 

Dental tape

To many people flossing means pain! It is especially for the people who can’t floss daily before braces treatment. As a result, bleeding and swelling of the unhealthy gums is normal once you commence with the procedure. But over the course of time, gum will become healthy and you will get adapted to flossing. For sensitive gums, flossing using dental tape is much better. 

It equips with ultrathin floss that is extremely spongy and smooth. Moreover, it is much thinner than that of the regular floss which is wide like ribbon. That’s why it glides through the teeth seamlessly. Interestingly, dental tape can be used in much similar way to that of the traditional floss. 

General hacks to floss with braces

Along daily flossing, it is really imperative to maintain the natural whiteness and brightness of the teeth. Some general hacks are mentioned here keeping whitening prospect in mind. 

Schedule daily cleaning

You can pay a visit to any dental hygienist for professional cleaning while having braces into your mouth. They are equipped with proper brackets to reach beyond the braces and ensure that the teeth are stain-free. Cleaning appointment should be made once in every 3-month.  

Avoid using whitening toothpaste

You may think of keeping the teeth white and bright and thereby start switching to the whitening toothpaste but it is not a great option. You are going to welcome the futuristic problems as it can’t reach beyond the braces. This means only the exposed surface of the teeth will get whiter and brighter ending up with an awful colour mismatch.  

Prefer electric toothbrush

If compared to usual manual toothbrushes, electrical toothbrushes are far more in delivering amazing result with less effort. You can find it at any local store! As it is a bit pricey you can make use of the voucher or coupon from your dentist.

No doubt braces promote to have an attractive smile while alleviating the probability of oral issue in future simultaneously. Therefore, you must take good care of your mouth while undergoing braces treatment. It is important to keep your mouth free from stains, plaque development, cavities, gingivitis and other dental problems. 

Even good oral hygiene keeps any serious dental problems at bay as well. Although it can be really tedious for you but your unconditional effort will end up by making braces treatment a grandeur success! If you are tired up by looking for a trustworthy dental clinic, then London Braces can be the right option. Achieve an impressive smile by making an appointment for a dentist consultation with us!