Tips for Taking Care of New Dental Braces

The first weeks of orthodontic braces can be exciting, frustrating, and sometimes painful. Even if you try your hardest to do the right thing, braces can cause soreness to your mouth.

As your teeth begin to move, it's normal for your teeth to ache and for your jaw to feel sore to some extent. You might get canker sores when the brackets rub the insides of your lips and cheeks. Fortunately, there are many over-the-counter treatments available to reduce the pain and irritation from braces. Some of these include Rincinol PRN, ComfortBrace Strips, OraChill, and OrthoDots. In a pinch, good 'ol dental wax also helps.

Some of the common problems that can occur when you have braces include: 

Bracket Comes Loose: To fix this problem, apply a small bit of orthodontic wax to the bracket. You might also want to apply a little between the braces and the soft tissue of your mouth. Call your orthodontist to have the bracket replaced at your earliest convenience. 

Bands Come Loose: This is a more serious problem, which your orthodontist needs to fix. Try to save the band for repair, if you can.

Protruding or Broken Wires: Poking wires are very common. You can use an eraser from the end of a pencil to move the wire to a less painful spot. If you are unable to move it, apply orthodontic wax or OrthoDots to the tip. A poking wire can sometimes tear up the insides of your cheeks and may get infected. To prevent this, rinse your mouth with warm salt water or antiseptic rinse. Call your orthodontist -- most of the time, you can just drop in to get the wire clipped, without an appointment. 

Loose spacers: Most people only wear spacers for one week to 10 days. They're not comfortable, but they're necessary to make room for orthodontic bands. If a spacer comes loose, call your orthodontist, because they will need to be repositioned or replaced. 

Avoid Problem Foods: It will be difficult to bite foods like hamburgers or burritos with your front teeth. It's better to to cut your food into small pieces and chew slowly and carefully. Avoid hard and chewy foods that can break your hardware, stringy foods that can get caught in your braces, and sharp foods like tortilla chips. Take corn off the cob. Avoid nuts, hard carrots, biting into apples, chewing on ice, and bubble gum.

With a little patience, the first weeks in braces will fly by. In time, your braces won't hurt as much. But after each adjustment, you could develop some soreness and new canker sores. Just repeat the steps that you took previously, and you'll feel better in no time.

Bite Wafers: A Low-Tech Way to Beat Braces Tooth Pain

Got sore teeth? Bite Wafers for Orthodontic Braces help relieve discomfort when you get your braces adjusted. Chewing on the wafer helps increase blood circulation in your teeth and gums, which in turn helps to reduce your pain and discomfort.

Bite Wafers are made of a semi-hard plastic which slightly gives way when you bite on it. Simply put it in your mouth and clench the bite wafer gently and intermittently between your teeth. In other words, just bite on it, on and off. Do this 3 or 4 times per day for 15 to 20 minutes per time. Do not bite down so hard that it makes your jaw ache. Gentle pressure is better. Ask your orthodontist if you need more specific instructions. Remember to wash your bite wafer at least once per day to keep it clean. You can soak it in Retainer Brite or another retainer cleaner, if you wish.

Bite Therapy Wafers are sold individually and are available in four scents/flavors: Bubblegum (Pink), Cherry (Clear), Grape (Purple), and Mint (Teal Green). They're an inexpensive, low-tech way to make your orthodontic treatment more comfortable. Try some Bite Wafers today!

Stop Your Braces From Hurting with Drug-Free OraChill Frozen Mouthpieces

Got new braces pain or mouth pain? Before you reach for the bottle of painkillers, try drug-free OraChill®.

OraChill frozen mouthpieces block
the pain that comes from your teeth.

OraChill is a whole new way to stop your braces from hurting. It is a mouthpiece made of medical grade polymer, filled with freezable non-toxic saline solution. You freeze OraChill in your home freezer, then apply it inside your mouth as needed. When you place a frozen OraChill mouthpiece inside your mouth as directed, it blocks the pain that comes from the nerves inside your mouth and jaw. The result is, the nerves in your mouth and jaw temporarily stop transmitting pain impulses to the brain! It has been clinically proven to work!

OraChill can help stop a large part of your orthodontic pain when you first get your braces on, or after an orthodontic adjustment. When used before meals (along with some dental wax to prevent irritation), it can help you eat more "challenging" foods -- so you don't need to limit yourself to soft foods all the time!

Use OraChill any time you suffer from any type of oral pain, whether it's from an orthodontic adjustment or other types of dental work or dental surgery.

Each box of OraChill contains 3 identical mouthpieces which must be frozen before use.
Place one mouthpiece on the inside of your upper gums, and the inside of your lower gums. (You don't put OraChill on your BRACES; you place it far into the tops and bottoms of your GUMS, where your nerves are that transmit the pain).

Leave the OraChill mouthpiece in place for two minutes. Then, remove it and replace it with the second chilled OraChill mouthpiece. Leave in place for two minutes. Then, remove it and replace it with the third chilled OraChill mouthpiece. The entire process takes about 6 minutes.

Each OraChill box contains 3 mouthpieces, which are totally re-usable. Just keep the 3 mouthpieces in your freezer and use them as often as you need, as many times as you need. OraChill is latex-free and DEHP-free. It has been FDA approved and successfully tested in patient trials.

Why suffer with the pain and discomfort of braces or other orthodontic work? Try OraChill today!