Can you Use an Electric Toothbrush With Braces?

Even simple dental things such as choosing the right toothbrush often start to seem a little more hectic once you choose to get braces. However, you would be glad to know that there’s no reason to be so.

Even when it comes to Electric toothbrushes, braces really don’t need to make your choice any more difficult. Most of the toothbrushes that you get actually have certain options that makes them a lot more compatible with your braces.

Again, as it goes without saying, there are also several toothbrushes that are made keeping in mind people who have braces. Tooth Advocates has already discussed about the Best Toothbrushes for those who have braces- click here to check out our article discussing the same.

Can you use an Electric Toothbrush with Braces?

One of the main questions my friends who use braces come to me with is, “Can you use an Electric Toothbrush with Braces?”

As it turns out, I have great news for you if you are about to ask me the same question! While it is true that braces do slightly increase the chances for food to get stuck in your mouth, it doesn’t really mean that you can’t use Electric Toothbrushes.

A lot of people seem to be afraid of the pulsating feature that some Toothbrushes have. However, that does not really need to worry them because these toothbrushes generally have the “Sensitive” mode for this exact reason! That is something one could choose to use, and they would be fine using Electric Toothbrushes even if they have braces.

How do I brush with an Electric Toothbrush if I have Braces?

Well, you might initially find yourself a little confused as to what would be the right way to brush your teeth once you choose to get braces or make the shift to electric toothbrushes (or both!)

However, there is no reason to feel worried- it’s really simple.

All you need to do are follow these steps and you’d be perfectly fine.

• Step 1: The First step would mostly consist of just getting rid of all the detachable parts from your orthodontic equipment, something that isn’t really too hard once you get the hang of it.
• Step 2: Step 2 consists of actually brushing but doing so gently, this includes brushing around the wires that your braces have as well as those parts of your teeth where the braces are attached. You might want to give a little extra time and attention, since these parts are actually more prone than the rest of your teeth to get something stuck in. What you ideally want to do is take your time and brush every wire and every junction individually and with care. This would ensure that there’s no food stuck and that there would be no problems with your beautiful enamel in the future.
• Step 3: Step 3 consists of the regular grind- you just do what you’ve always done when you’ve brushed your teeth. You put in time, effort and attention in order to ensure that you’ve brushed your entire teeth as well as your tongue properly (click here to find out why that’s important), just make sure that you don’t overdo it.
• Step 4: Proper Rinsing and taking care of your toothbrush. What you finally want to do is actually go ahead and rinse your mouth properly, this would ensure that the cleaning process is successfully concluded. Also, you need to actually take care of your toothbrush once you’re done brushing. You need to put it in an open place and hang it properly so that the water can roll away and it can dry properly so that bacteria cannot grow on it overnight.

Are Electric Toothbrushes better than regular ones for people with braces?

What you might be wondering by this point is if Electric Toothbrushes are better than regular ones as far as people with braces are concerned.

In general, Electric Toothbrushes are considered to be better in getting rid of plague and keeping your overall oral hygiene up. Quoting Coppe + Sears,

Good oral hygiene can sometimes be a challenge for orthodontic patients in braces because food can be easily trapped around the brackets and under the archwires. In a study comparing electric toothbrushes with manual toothbrushes, the American Journal of Orthodontics & Dentofacial Orthopedics found that there was significantly greater plaque removal with an electric brush over a manual brush.

By regular sense, it would follow that they would be at least as good as manual toothbrushes even for people who have braces.

The only negative that comes to my mind would be the fact that manual toothbrushes don’t have a time limit, while Electric Toothbrushes generally have a 2 minute time limit allotted for brushing– some of the people who have braces might actually want to do it a little more slowly, and they might still want to stick to the old fashioned toothbrushes so that they can do it at their own pace.

Do not forget to consult your Orthodontist every once in a while.

One of the main things that dental health needs is professional care. This is exactly why you need to keep getting timely checkups from your dentist and orthodontist. Quoting OralB,

Seeing your orthodontist for checkups and adjustments is essential. He or she can repair broken pieces, answer general questions, and address any irregularities such as cavities or every meal or snack if you wear braces. And some dentists recommend a fluoride mouthwash to help control plaque buildup in the places that are tough to reach with a toothbrush.

Tooth Advocates is here for you!

And of course, we here at Tooth Advocates are always here for you! If there’s any question that you have which you feel like we might be able to address or answer, feel free to reach out to us and we would be glad to help you out any way we can.

Also, we would like to thank you for taking your time to read our article till the very end. We really hope that you learned something that would help you out in keeping up that beautiful smile for a long time. We’re really glad to have you over and we really hope that you would check back for our upcoming articles here on Tooth Advocates.

Until we meet again on yet another amazing article, Tooth Advocates wishes you a great day and takes your leave!