Caring for Braces: Your Day-to-Day Guide
Reviewed by Dr. Dima Kalakech, Board-Certified Orthodontist
How do you take care of braces? Brush and floss after meals, skip hard and sticky foods, wear your elastics as prescribed, and know the simple fixes for loose wires. Follow those four rules, and your treatment at Embrace Orthodontics will stay comfortable and on schedule.
Braces do their best work in a clean, protected mouth. The habits below are the ones we teach every patient on banding day, and the families who follow them consistently finish treatment on time, with healthy enamel to show off when the brackets come off.
Brushing and Flossing with Braces
Keeping teeth and gums healthy matters more than ever during treatment, because brackets give plaque extra places to hide. Brush after every meal, floss daily (threaders and water flossers make it easier), and keep your regular dental cleanings every six months. Patients who fall behind on hygiene may need extra professional cleanings, and adults with a history of gum disease should also see a periodontist during treatment.
Eating with Braces: What to Avoid
For the first day or two after getting braces, stick to soft foods. After that, you can eat most things, as long as you protect your appliances:
- Chewy foods: bagels, hard rolls, licorice
- Crunchy foods: popcorn, ice, chips
- Sticky foods: caramel, gum, gummies
- Hard foods: nuts, hard candy
- Bite-into foods: corn on the cob, whole apples, raw carrots (cut them into pieces instead)
And one non-food warning: chewing pens, pencils or fingernails damages braces just as fast as candy does. Broken appliances add weeks to treatment.
Managing Soreness
Some tenderness is normal when braces are placed and after adjustments; teeth are typically most sensitive for the first day or so, with soreness fading within three to five days. Take whatever you’d normally take for a headache, rinse with warm salt water, and use the orthodontic wax we supply on any spot that rubs. Lips, cheeks and tongue toughen up within a week or two.
Feeling loose teeth? Don’t panic; that’s the treatment working. Teeth must loosen to move, and they firm up in their new positions when treatment finishes.
Quick Fixes for Loose Wires and Bands
If a wire pokes or a band comes loose, you can usually handle the situation yourself: gently push a stray wire back with a pencil eraser, cover any irritated spots with wax, and leave a loose bracket in place until we can see you. Then call us to schedule a repair; loose appliances left unfixed stall your progress. For the full playbook, see our emergency care guide.
Elastics: The Part Only You Can Do
Rubber bands are a way for patients to control their own timeline. The teeth and jaws only move toward their corrected positions when elastics are worn exactly as prescribed, every day, not just the day before your appointment. Consistent wear is the single biggest thing you can do to finish on time.
Sports and Activities
Play sports? Tell us. We’ll provide a protective mouthguard for contact sports, and yes, you can still play instruments, swim, and do everything else you love with braces on.
Frequently Asked Questions About Braces Care
Braces come with a learning curve, and it’s normal to have questions. Here are answers to common concerns.
How do I survive the first week of braces?
Soft foods, wax on any rough spots, your usual headache remedy for soreness, and patience: cheeks and lips toughen up fast. By day five most patients are back to normal life, minus the popcorn.
Do braces hurt more on day two or three?
Soreness usually peaks in the first 24 hours after banding or an adjustment and eases over three to five days. If pain is sharp, localized or getting worse instead of better, call us; that’s not normal soreness.
What should go in a braces care kit?
A travel toothbrush, floss threaders or a floss pick, orthodontic wax, lip balm and a small mirror. Keep one in a backpack or desk and after-lunch brushing actually happens.
Can I chew gum with braces?
We recommend against it. Even sugar-free gum can stick to brackets and bend wires. If you want fresh breath, a sugar-free mint you let dissolve is the safer route.
Questions About Your Braces? We’re Here
Call (210) 253-2424 or request an appointment if anything about your braces needs attention. Embrace Orthodontics serves Cibolo, Schertz, and surrounding communities.