Flossing is important. It can help keep you away from dental issues caused by getting pieces of food stuck between your teeth. Cleaning the spaces that a toothbrush has troubles reaching keeps your mouth looking and feeling fresh. You have your flossing routine down to a science, completing it twice a day is easy, but now you have braces. Are you using the right techniques for cleaning your teeth adorned with metal brackets? Here is how to floss the right way when you have braces.
Braces are tricky to get in and around when flossing and many people give up out of sheer frustration. Here is how you can floss without becoming annoyed at getting stuck in the wires.
This specialized tool for flossing with braces is perfect for speeding up the process.
1. Insert the floss through the eye of the threader. A floss threader is a thin plastic piece that looks kind of like a lasso, so imagine you are in a lassoing competition at the Calgary Stampede.
2. Now, take the point of the lasso and insert it under the wire of your braces, then pull the floss gently through.
3. Pressing the floss between two teeth, slide it up and down so it cleans the sides of both teeth. If you are flossing your top teeth, make an upside-down horseshoe or u-shape, taking the floss on a journey up the side of one tooth and down the side of the other.
4. Gently pull the floss out from your teeth and behind the wire then start again with a fresh piece for your next two teeth.
Are you finding it difficult to clean between your teeth and along your gum line, even with a floss threader? Try using a Waterpik, a specialized tool that gets the job done via a stream of water.
1. Fill the tool with water.
2. Insert the tapered tip on the flosser and test it first for pressure and working order.
3. Place the tip of the Waterpik in your mouth and press to start the flow of water. Lightly close your lips to keep water from splashing everywhere but allow the water to drain out of your mouth as you use this device.
4. Glide the water stream along your gum line and between each of your teeth.
Next time you go to clean your teeth adorned with braces, you will be ready to handle every nook and cranny with your newfound skill of specialized flossing.
