Don’t try anything on your own as it might make things worse. This is very frequent, especially after a brace adjustment, and unless you are in pain or discomfort you shouldn’t worry about it. If you have any concerns you can also call your dental practice over the phone they should be able to give advice to aid the situation temporarily.

Yes, it is. The purpose is to make the Braces work. The wire pressures the teeth so it will be easier to move and pull them over to a new location while letting new bone and cells regenerate. This process will make it easier to correct the teeth and may take weeks.

If painkillers don’t work it is best to call your dentist and schedule an appointment for a quick check. You shouldn’t also be experiencing bleeding and jaw joint pains after 1 week as the teeth should have adjusted by that time.

This is normal, our mouth produces receptors that signals the brain to digest food. Once the mouth encounter unfamiliar objects such as braces the brain don’t actually realize that it isn’t food. Once your mouth adjusts with the braces your drooling will decrease or yet will return to normal.

Yes, hard, crunchy, sweet and sticky foods are a no-no. Hard foods will cause you pain as your teeth will receive pressure from trying to chew or just simply bite them off a piece. Sweet will leave cavities and will damage your teeth. Sticky foods will also not help at all; sodas will stain your teeth, a gummy bear and a bubble gum will stick inside the spaces between your teeth or worse may break your braces’ band and brackets.

Don’t panic. Due to continuous studies, braces nowadays are proven to be safe. It will just go through the normal process like what happens to the food we eat. Inhaling a part of a brace is a different story though, if the part happened to go through the lungs it will cause problems. Call your dentist immediately if any of these accidents happens.

Over the counter painkillers can help but your dentist will surely give you advice on what to take as soon as the Braces are applied because pain and soreness are expected on the first week. Eating warm soft foods will also help reduce the pain, try to gargle warm salted water as well. It will heal after the first few weeks for sure.

We call this edge archwire, this may not just cause discomfort but may also give you ulcer in your cheeks. You can put some wax to cover it up, or you can ask your dentist to trim the edge at your next brace adjustment.

Braces and retainers should be cleaned regularly, unless your purpose for wearing a retainer is to invite bad mouth odor, bacteria and germs. Not to mention the stains that we get from the foods we eat that can give us mouth diseases. If you do not have a good oral hygiene and do not clean your brace properly it may prolong your treatment.

It can be tricky as dentists use different brackets, bands, appliances and wires. They may also have different training backgrounds and work in different ways. Unless you have to move to another country it is best to stick to the same dentist or same practice during the treatment.

You certainly need to have a good oral hygiene. Make sure you brush your teeth after every meal and before going to sleep. Also don’t hesitate to use interdental brushes and floss. Avoid drinking and eating dark foods and liquids such as coffee, black tea and blueberries which can discolour your braces (for tooth coloured braces).