Metal Mouth Message Board

I've got some wounds in my mouth , so now I want to protect my gums by putting some wax on the braces next to the wounds. Does any one know what to do with wax? May it stay on my teeth for long? How long? Do I need ti remove it before brushing? May I eat with wax in my mouth? What if I swallow it?

Thanks a lot!

Take a small piece of wax and roll it into a little ball. Dry your teeth and brackets where you are going to put the wax because if your teeth are wet it doesn't stick so well.

You can eat with it on but you need to take it out to brush because otherwise you will get wax in your toothbrush

I just change the wax once or twice a day after brushing. It will not hurt you if you swallow it. I've swallowed some and didn't even notice.

Lisa x

Hi, guys!

Thanks for replies! I'd like to know for how long are you using the wax? Did you need it only at the beginning of the treatment or all the way through?

I used wax for the first couple of weeks only. It was amazing how quickly my mouth toughened up and got used to all the equipment! I have been braced for 4 months and haven't used it since those first couple of weeks- hope it's the same for you.

Theres always one area that I have to wax for a couple of days every week... This is five months in.. I do salt water rinses etc but the way my mouth is, it constantly rubs.. The Ortho says he can't really do anything about it. Its mainly due to my small mouth!

Anyway its at the back so I always suck in lots of air to dry the area as much as possible. I roll a ball of wax in dry fingers.. Open up my mouth and place it on the bracket and gently mould it.. 9 times out of 10 I get it right but sometimes it can be frustrating!!

Hi natafele

I had that same problem not too long ago because my wire was poking out and digging into my cheek - it really bothered me when eating

If it's the wire that is bothering you, you can call your Ortho to get the wire snipped - it feels soooo much better afterwards!

But if it's the actual brace that is bothering you, make sure your teeth, brace, and wax is dry and roll up the wax in a little ball and place it on the brace and make sure it goes all around the brace to keep in place. Sometimes it helps to smooth it out with a wet finger (sometimes the wax wants to stick to your finger if your finger is dry and won't stick to the brace)

Another thing to take care of sores in the mouth is KK's salt water rinses. Put warm water in a glass with half a teaspoon to a teaspoon of salt, as much salt taste as you can handle. Then rinse your mouth out with the salt water, especially near the sores but you can only swish it around your whole mouth. You can do it daily - it's supposed to be really good for oral health. I try to do it every morning and not rinse out my mouth with fresh water for at least 15 minutes.

As for wax in the mouth, just change the wax whenever you feel bothered by your wire or bracket or you can just fix the wax that was already in your mouth (I didn't have a problem taking the wax out, fixing it back into a ball and reapplying it) You can eat with the wax in your mouth if it bothers you to eat without any. I've swallowed my wax a couple of times - it's nontoxic so it won't hurt you or anything.

well, I hope you received a lot of info to help answer your questions

Good Luck!


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3 teeth extracted: Thursday, July 20, 2006
2 teeth extracted: Thursday, July 27, 2006
5 spacers put in: Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Spacers out, full braces in: Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Brace Treatment Time: 22 - 26 months.