Brushing and Flossing

When you have braces, it's very important to brush and floss after every meal in order to keep your teeth and gums healthy throughout your orthodontic treatment. If you need help choosing the right toothbrush, toothpaste, and dental floss, please ask us and we can help you choose the right products for your teeth and your appliance.

Brushing with Braces

Brush your teeth for two minutes after every meal with a soft-bristled, small-headed toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste. As an alternative, you can use a powered toothbrush to increase your brushing effectiveness. Brush the outside and inside surfaces of your teeth using small, gentle, circular motions while positioning the head of the toothbrush at a 45-degree angle to the gum line. Brush your teeth’s chewing surfaces and the inside surface of your front teeth using short, gentle, back-and-forth motions. Pay close attention to the areas around your brackets or other appliances.

brushing with braces

Flossing with Braces

Flossing after every meal will help keep your teeth and braces clean, which will also help keep your treatment time on track. To floss with braces, use a floss threader or special orthodontic floss to thread the floss behind each wire. Wrap the ends of the floss around your pointer fingers of both hands, leaving a few inches of taught floss between them. Gently slide the floss between each set of teeth using a back and forth motion. Floss the sides of each tooth beneath the gum line to remove plaque and food particles. Repeat this process until you’ve flossed all of your teeth. If you find that your floss is not removing all of the food particles between your teeth and around your braces, ask us about a water flosser!

flossing with braces

Capture A Winning Smile

You're already on your way to a great new smile. Come by our photo booth to snap a selfie, get social, or show off that fantastic new grin! Say Cheese!
“Dr. Castle and his office staff are the perfect extension of the amazing customer service and orthodontic knowledge and expertise that Dr. Sales is known for. We couldn't be happier with the smooth transition and we look forward to a fabulous future!” ~ Jackie M Very nice staff, I can't thank them enough. I wanted braces for years but was told I couldn't get them for outrageous reasons so I went to Dr. Castle for a second opinion. I got braces and feel so confident and beautiful. Thank you for helping me! The staff is very caring and just fun to be around! ~ Ashlee T Dr. Castle and his staff are wonderful. My daughter was very apprehensive about getting braces. They have all been great and have made her experience pleasant. They have a really neat ticket incentive program where you earn tickets for things like good brushing habits and they also have a photo booth where Dr. Castle will take silly pictures with his patients. Makes going to the orthodontist fun! I love it!

 

~ Missy O
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