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3 Reasons You Need to Brush Three Times a Day with Braces
Why do teeth waggle more in braces?
Let’s solve the question:
You were checking for brace progress, you nudged your front tooth and it’s waggling.
How? You understood the assignment: keep your teeth and gums tip top. You did what you were told, followed the drill: there’s no plaque on you! Gums? A healthy pink.
What’s going on? Is your tooth about to fallout?
In your head, worst case scenarios bubble up (we’re all overly dramatic at times). The tooth’s root snapped under the brace pressure! The gaps your orthodontist created are too big to keep your teeth in their sockets!
This is not what you signed up for on a wet Wednesday afternoon.
It’s ok, take a breath – that wiggle's all part of the orthodontic plan!
What is the periodontal ligament – the PDL?
The secret superpower behind your braces? The periodontal ligament
Your PDL keeps your teeth in your mouth – it IS the waggle!
The job of the PDL’s stretchy fibres is to connect tooth root to bone. The PDL sits between the tooth and the alveolar bone. That’s why your teeth wiggle – they're suspended by the PDL – not jammed into your jawbone!
Phew, glad we got that straight.
In braces, the PDL helps make new spaces and closes the gaps
In your fixed brace, chemical messages from the PDL helps new space in bone to open, and it helps close old spaces.
Your teeth have always had a wiggle but in fixed braces, at times, there’s a little extra wiggle room around your teeth, particularly a few days after adjustments.
Hang about, though ...
How does the PDL remodel bone?
It’s a case of a squash and a squeeze
Your periodontal ligament dials up chemicals to dissolve or make bone, all without a laboratory in sight. It’s enough to impress the sternest of chemistry teachers.
As your orthodontist tweaks your brace, it places gentle pressure on your teeth. Your PDL can stand pressures beyond 50kg per tooth – that's two fully packed holiday suitcases. But your brace only puts a maximum of around 100g on a tooth – that's about two slices of bread - and often much less.
But that gentle, controlled pressure is what squashes or pulls on the PDL. Where it pulls, the bone will form and where it squashes, the bone will dissolve.
It’s an amazing biological project manager delivering your glow up!
When your brace hurts, blame your PDL!
There is a drawback, and you’ve probably noticed its effects
Your PDL also dials up a chemical called prostaglandin. This chemical messenger makes nerves more sensitive.
We know, it’s a definite boo hiss moment for the PDL - and for ‘moment’, read a few hours after adjustments and for a up to a couple of days beyond. That prostaglandin has set your nerves to high alert.
That’s when we may need to Manage Brace Pain.
- Sip iced water
- Eat soft food
- Massage with a Monotip Brush
- Help heal gums with Gengigel
- Don’t suffer unnecessarily if we can take a painkiller – always follow the instructions on the packet!
The silver lining is that it shows your PDL is busy in there!
How can I be sure my PDL is healthy in fixed braces?
The PDL has its superpowers, but it also has its kryptonite: plaque
Looking after your PDL means looking after your gums. That’s right – that's why your orthodontist, friends, family, the neighbour’s dog (maybe not) keep nagging!
If you’re using the Fixed Brace Daily Care kit three times a day, congratulations, you’re looking after your gums with VITIS Orthodontic’s gold standard medical grade solutions and formulations
It’s plaque’s worst nightmare but your BFF – ok, maybe not forever, but until the end of braces!
- Plaque busting ingredients to give your gums optimal care
- Plaque bacteria stopped in its tracks before it irritates your gums
- Reduce gum inflammation if they do flare up at adjustment time
- Alcohol free formulas to care for sensitive oral tissues rather than stress them
Why is it important to keep plaque at bay and protect your PDL
Inflamed gums from poor plaque removal are driven by bacteria. This bacteria-led inflammation can spread to the PDL and stop it doing its brace-helpful work.
Uncontrolled, these circumstances mean:
- Bone loss speeds up, bone production slows down
- Tooth roots may be reabsorbed
- The PDL’s suspension is no longer stable
- Your brace puts pressure on the weakened structures
- Teeth can loosen
- The effects on the PDL might be irreversible
*swallows hard
Let’s back up and away from that scenario.
It’s why we say, keep brushing with VITIS Orthodontic
- VITIS Orthodontic Toothpaste is semi-liquid so it helps hunt down plaque in hard-to-reach places.
- Interprox Interdental Brushes get in and around gaps - plaque has no hiding place
- A Monotip Brush brushes the gumline keeping gums clean and protected
- Add in an Orthodontic Access Toothbrush and plaque loses the battle
- Mid-morning and mid-afternoon, just as plaque thinks it can get a grip of your gums, VITIS Orthodontic Mouthwash swooshes in to keep anti-microbial properties topped up.
How will I know if my teeth waggling is a concern while I’m wearing braces?
When the wiggle turns to wobble
No tooth should feel floppy in braces. You shouldn’t be able to tilt or twist them.
Talk to your orthodontic team if you experience:
- A tooth that feels very loose
- Red, swollen gums that aren’t responding to additional cleaning and care
PDL: the spring in your braces progress
Your brushing skills, your orthodontist and your PDL are the glow-up squad perfecting a smile to celebrate.
Equip like a professional with a Fixed Brace Daily Care Kit. It’s the medical grade care you need during orthodontic treatment and let’s just say, if cleaning braces was an orthodontic sport, with this kit, you’d be gold on the podium.
Science, orthodontic specialism, your commitment and biology – brilliant, right?
Keep brushing!
