Metal Mouth Message Board

First day of braces I'm very nervous about my first meal in college with other people, I just finished my dinner and brushed straight after because there were so many things stuck in. So do you take your toothbrush to school/college/university? Any tips

I took my travel toothbrush, and a sample tube of toothpaste and kept it in my purse. This past semester I only had one day where i was on campus for lunch. Sounds sad, but I ate my lunch in my car as now that i have braces, I hate eating in front of people outside my family and close friends. The first few weeks of classes I brushed afterwards, but honestly brushing your teeth in public bathrooms sucks. Lol. For a while I'd have this one bathroom I'd go to, because no one ever was in there when I was, but the bathroom just wasn't in a convient spot. I had to go on the opposite side of campus from where I needed to be. So after those few weeks, I stopped brushing my teeth after lunch (the horror! Lol) when I was on campus, and just swished my mouth plenty of times with water from my water bottle.
For lunches I never get a lot of food stuck. I always break my food into tiny pieces.

That's exactly what I'm concerned about! Luckily I'm only in college for 2 lunch times but I need to eat something or ill be so hungry! Any lunch suggestions? Im off to university soon, how have you found braces and uni? Im so nervous

VikkiHanley wrote:That's exactly what I'm concerned about! Luckily I'm only in college for 2 lunch times but I need to eat something or ill be so hungry! Any lunch suggestions? Im off to university soon, how have you found braces and uni? Im so nervous

Don't be nervous! you'll be just fine. I thought it'd be weird having braces as a university student, but it hasn't been. I actually feel more confident with meeting new people now than I felt when I first started university and didn't have braces. I don't feel like people are judging me based on my smile/appearance. No one ever comments negatively on my braces and I have all metal upper and lower braces. The only tiny downside I find is that people think I'm younger than I really am, though that's something I've struggled with years. Haha. Other than that minor thing, it's been a positive experience.

As for lunch suggestions, it's kind of personal preference. When I'm out I tend to go with softer foods if I can (yogurt, fruit cups, soft sandwiches like peanut butter and jelly, etc). But when you're out with people you can't always, in which case just avoid sticky food, or lettuce because that always gets stuck. Haha. Water will be your friend whenever you eat in public.

I'm a university professor with full braces and I get by just fine! You will quickly learn which foods are "safe" to eat in front of other people- in my opinion, sandwiches with lettuce are terrible, but foods that are eaten with a knife and fork (even pizza) are fine if you eat small bites. I carry a toothbrush and toothpaste in my bag all the time so I can brush after lunch ( I always eat lunch on campus). Find a nice, clean restroom in one of the buildings where there is low traffic (my favorite is on the third floor of our student union). People don't care if you are brushing your teeth in a public restroom, just be respectful and clean up after yourself

Good luck with your braces journey!!!
--Prof

Thank you guys! First day of college with braces and I had no negative comments at all, even someone telling me they look quite nice, most people were shocked at how well I could speak had a sandwich for lunch an italian BMT from subway, just pulled pieces off and ate slowly. The braces arent bothering me so much its my palatal expandor more than anything. Its making my tongue really sore and starting to indent into it!

I try to check my teeth using the camera on my phone a couple times during lunch so that I don't realize later that I had something in my teeth the wholeeeeee time.

It's always handy to have a pocket mirror and some flossers or interdental brushes in your bag to pull out that olive or piece of spinach stuck in your braces!

Get yourself a DentaKit Braces Survival Kit and you'll be covered!

http://www.dentakit.com/denforad1.html

Interdental brushes are great as it can be hard to remove food from brackets even with a tooth brush. I find if I chew at the back of my mouth that nothing gets stuck in the brackets at the front where it is noticeable

I also work in a university environment, a research lab, more specifically and I keep a couple of travel size toothpastes, an interdental brush, an orthodontic (v shaped) brush, and a bottle of mouthwash in my drawer at work. At first, I was pretty embarrassed to go brush my teeth in the common bathroom at work, but now it's not a big deal at all as I'd much rather have clean teeth! I typically use the interdental brush first, followed by the orthodontic toothbrush, lots of rinsing, and lastly the mouthwash. There are days that I end up going home for lunch (live 5 minutes from campus and gives me an opportunity to let my puppy out) and on those days, it's the waterpik, followed by Sonicare, rinsing, and mouthwash.

I'm also a student and I carry a toothbrush and toothpaste with me. But, if it's inconvenient for me to brush I'll just swish lots of water after lunch, check a mirror and go on with my day.