Our League City Dentist’s Tips For Kids’ Dental Braces Hygiene

If the state of their bedrooms is any indication, kids and teens aren’t always the best at keeping things clean, including their teeth. Even if parents do their best to teach proper brushing and flossing techniques, sometimes an intervention is needed from our League City family dentist. Our practice knows that our younger patients might need a little extra help learning proper oral hygiene routines, and this is especially true if they wear dental braces. Our League City dentist has some tips for helping your child master dental braces hygiene and Invisalign hygiene, which will aid in maintaining overall oral health. 

Proper League City Dental Braces Hygiene

It’s important for kids to establish healthy routines as early as possible. The sooner they make brushing, flossing, and regular trips to our League City family dentist a part of their established lifestyle, the cleaner their teeth will stay during their dental braces treatment. Here are some tips to help your child along the way:

1. Avoid certain foods: our League City dentist recommends that kids with dental braces avoid eating things like popcorn, hard or sticky candy, chips, and gum. They can damage wiring and brackets, requiring an extra trip to our office. Particles from these foods are easily caught in your child’s braces, creating a breeding ground for the type of bacteria that causes tooth decay.
2. Brush thoroughly: Not only is it imperative for your child to brush after every meal, but using the right toothbrush will make a world of difference in maintaining dental braces hygiene. An electric toothbrush with angled bristles will remove food particles and plaque around wires and brackets better than a standard flat brush.
3. Floss regularly: flossing is now more important for your kids than ever, but it’s also more of a challenge, too. Our League City family dentist recommends using a tool called a dental threader, which makes it easier to thread floss underneath the wire of your child’s braces, and reach the base of the tooth to remove debris and prevent decay.

Proper League City Invisalign Hygiene 

Because Invisalign is a treatment that features a series of aligners meant to be removed for eating, brushing, and flossing, proper Invisalign hygiene isn’t much different than for everyone else. Our League City dentist stresses the importance of regular flossing for all patients, but especially those receiving alignment treatments such as League City Invisalign or League City dental braces, as shifting teeth means different cracks and crevices where food particles can easily get trapped. Even patients using Invisalign aligners need to up their flossing game to accommodate their new shifting smile.

Our League City Family Dentist Can Give Your Child a Gorgeous Smile!

If your child or teens needs dental braces or Invisalign, call our office today to schedule an appointment and discuss your options with our League City dentist. We’re dedicated to the highest quality of dental care and will go above and beyond to give your entire family a healthy smile.