How to Floss with Braces

Cleaning and flossing your teeth while having braces is very important for your smile and your health. Flossing can be very efficient for you. It is very important to floss between each tooth once a day and uses a small interproximal brush to clean around the brackets and under the wires. You don't have to skip flossing even if it takes more time with your braces.

There are different techniques of flossing like faster or slower. it's doesn't matter what you choose it's important to floss regularly to prevent gum disease and tooth decay while braces are working to align your teeth for a more confident smile. Here at Country Roads Family Dental, you can get a complete understanding of how to use traditional floss and what you need to do while flossing.

How to use traditional floss with Braces -- First of all, you have to cut an 18 to 24-inch piece of floss. Thread the floss between the main wire and your teeth. It helps to be in front of a mirror so you can watch the thread to make sure it's going where you'd like it to.

Wrap the ends of the floss around your index fingers to make handling the floss easier and gently press the floss between the two teeth, and slide the floss up and down along the sides of both teeth. If you're doing the top teeth, make an upside-down U shape: Go up the side of one tooth to the gum line, and then go down the side of the other tooth. After that, you have to remove the floss, and gently unthread it from behind the wire. Be careful to not pop the floss out of the tooth. You might accidentally knock the wire and pop it out of the bracket. Move to the next pair of teeth by repeating the same process.