Appliance Care

Now that you have an orthodontic appliance, you want it to be as effective as possible and this will shorten your treatment time.

Take good care of your appliance to prevent breakages.

Avoid habits that can pull brackets off or bend wires:

• Chewing your pen;
• Chewing ice cubes;
• Opening water bottles with your teeth;
• Biting your finger nails.

Foods that can damage your appliance and that need to be avoided:

• Sticky lollies such as minties, fantales, redskins, starburst, toffee;
• Hard foods such as nuts, pork crackling, crusty breads, biscuits such as ginger snaps and Anzac biscuits;
• Chewing meat off bones, corn off the cob;
• Cut up your apples and raw carrots to prevent damaging your appliance.

Avoid acidic or sugary food and drinks as they promote damage and decay of your teeth.

Keep your teeth and braces clean.

• Clean your teeth and braces with fluoride toothpaste and a small soft toothbrush immediately after each meal including lunch. Your braces should shine and your gums should remain pink and firm and not bleed during brushing.
• Interdental toothbrushes can clean underneath and around your wires and braces making them great at getting to the difficult places.
• Floss at least once a day. The floss needs to be first threaded under the arch wire before going between your teeth. Then floss up and down the sides of the teeth.
• Superfloss, from Oral-B, is excellent to thread between the teeth and also for flossing fixed retainer wires.
• Disclosing Tablets can help you see plaque and improve the quality of your brushing and flossing.
• Fluoride Mouth Rinse from Colgate is provided to our fixed banding patients. It is recommended that you use one cap full, once a week to strengthen the enamel on your teeth to help resist dental decay.

Wear your elastics and appliances as instructed.

Elastics won't work if they are in their bag, they need to be worn.

Keep your appointments and be on time.

Your orthodontist will need to regularly check your appliance and make adjustments so that treatment progresses as quickly as is possible.

Visit your dentist every 6 months for a dental check-up and fluoride application.