Truth of staining teeth once braces removed

[lildave]

Hello all! I just got de-braced about a month ago. My treatment was 13 months with braces and 6 months of spacer retainer thingys (can u tell i'm not a dentist?)

During my 13 month journey I smoked, drank coffee, tea, soda, chewed gum, and didn't brush after every meal. I brushed about 3 times on average. When I got my braces off I was scared to see what I might have done. I've heard all the rumors of teeth staining forever, different shades, etc.

Once they were off my teeth were as white as ever! I had used crest whitestrips prior to getting braced so I don't know if that had anything to do with it. I didn't use whiteneing toothpaste either nor did I floss when I had braces. I know I'm such a bad patient!

Just for those out there scared of the staining rumor, it was un-true in my case. My dentist said the only way to get staining is if you let plaque build around your brackets.

Just hoping to shed some light on the issue!

[Jesslzz]

wow, thanks lildave!

I know I'm not the perfect patient either, I just eat what I want and I don't brush in a perfect-record-style , so I was wondering if very stained teeth were meant to be my reward for that behavior in the future

Anyway my family and some friends that haven't seen me in a while told me the other day that my teeth were looking whiter now than before putting my braces on! So I guess you are right, and I won't worry if I skip all the brushing after one meal

Thanks for sharing your experience!

[Joanna20]

Hi, I'm an okay-ish patient and I agree on that. Depending on your enamel your teeth will stain if u form plaque around the brackets! I don't floss everyday because I think it will be much easier once I take the braces off, so why bother to much now? 3 or 4 times a week is what my patience allows me

Joanna