Getting treatment with braces means you’ll have a beautiful, straight smile in an average of 18 to 24 months. The journey doesn’t stop there, however. The goal is for you to have a great smile and to enjoy better oral healthcare for the rest of your life. When you work with your orthodontist in Melbourne, FL, you can develop habits that lead to a lifelong, healthy smile. 

Orthodontic Treatment and Your Oral Hygiene

Orthodontic care involves correcting the alignment of the teeth and jaws with braces, Invisalign, and other appliances. All these different treatment efforts aim for a healthy, straight smile. Taking good care of your teeth and gums during treatment is highly important. This is true whether you have braces or use Invisalign’s clear aligner trays.

Traditional braces have brackets attached to your teeth and connected by wires. Plaque buildup with braces can be significant if you don’t adopt a strict oral hygiene regimen daily. You have a lot of extra surface area on the teeth where food particles can be trapped. Braces make the challenge of flossing even more difficult than usual because of the appliances that are in the way. Gingivitis, bad breath, and demineralization of the teeth can occur if you don’t keep up with diligent brushing and flossing.

Invisalign wearers have some advantages in this area. The clear plastic aligners can be removed whenever the patient wants to eat or brush their teeth. However, they must also be regularly cleaned, as harmful bacteria can build up in them.

Risk of Cavities and Gum Disease

The new oral hygiene challenges that you’ll face during orthodontic treatment can have a significant impact on your oral health. If you don’t effectively clean around your braces or while being treated with Invisalign, it can be very easy to develop cavities or gum disease. The plaque buildup that can occur will lead directly to both problems. Food particles trapped by braces or Invisalign trays become a breeding ground for harmful bacteria in the mouth. These bacteria can inflame the gum tissues or start to erode the enamel on the teeth.

Melbourne Orthodontics recommends a proactive approach to oral health care to prevent potential problems after your treatment with Invisalign or braces ends. Patients with braces should use an interdental brush. This small, specialized toothbrush makes it easy to brush plaque off in those hard-to-reach places around the braces. A floss threader can make it easier to floss between the teeth. We also recommend using a water flosser with braces to provide even more effective cleaning during your daily routine.

Patients being treated with Invisalign have to take extra care as well. The aligners can be removed for up to two hours daily while you’re eating and caring for your teeth. Problems can set in if people put the aligners back in without brushing and flossing first. That traps plaque directly against the teeth. You must also soak the aligners in a cleaning solution once daily to keep harmful bacteria from building up. We also recommend not eating or drinking anything other than water while wearing the aligners.

A Lifelong Healthy Smile After Treatment

The time when you undergo treatment with braces is about more than simply achieving a perfect smile, although that’s one of the main benefits. It’s also about getting you to a place where you can enjoy a lifetime of better oral health. It would be a shame to go through your treatment only to become lax in your oral healthcare later, which could lead to gum disease, cavities, or other problems with your perfect smile.

Once your braces come off or you retire that last tray of Invisalign aligners, you should approach your daily oral healthcare routine just as diligently. The good habits of daily brushing and flossing you’ve established during treatment should continue throughout your life. Patients who maintain good oral healthcare during–and after–their treatment enjoy better oral health outcomes later in life!

If you’re interested in treatment with braces or Invisalign, Contact Us at Melbourne Orthodontics today to schedule an appointment.