Stains!

[Rae]

Hi all, I'm getting my brace fitted on Monday (Eeeek!!) I am having ceramic brackets & clear bands though I'm worried about staining. what sorts of foods have you found that you have to avoid? obviously red wine & curry are out of the question but I live on italian foods - lasagne, bolognese etc would I be ok with these? Also i have heard that smoke coloured bands are less likely to stain? Advice & info kindly received!!!
Cheers Guys x

[bbsadmin]

If you search the board, you'll find many posts with this information.

[TnC]

I was thinking the same thing since I'm getting ceramic and clear on top. I better get to searching.

[Crazy4Snow]

Stains are one of the reasons I went with metal braces...I wear the silver ligs and they never stain. But there is a thread here about lig colors and all that go along with them. Very helpful thread.

[FabChatter]

I have ceramic just on the top 6. I was warned that they will stain, but I have had no problem at all. I don't have to have any elastic bands, since I had the Damon Brackets used. It was all my orthodontists idea, but he took care of my kids and I trust him. I do sip coffee and I even had a slurpee...haven't tried a tomato sauce yet. When I can, I will post pics!


Fab
(but still in pain!)

[Jenn B]

I have ceramic on the top and haven't incurred a stain yet! I have eaten everything! Curry, tomato sauce, red wine, coffee...the list goes on! I also don't have any elastic bands either so that could be a reason as well. I am religious with my brushing though! At least 3 times a day and lots of water!

[catgyrl]

It's not the brackets that stain, it's the elastic bands/ligatures that stain. Soda, coffee, tea, curry, anything with tomato sauce and turmeric will stain the ligatures. Also... Orange juice! I found that out the hard way.

Drinking with bendy straws is great because you can aim your drink towards the back of your mouth, which keeps the front teeth clean.

You could also try colored ligs. The darker ones don't stain. Of course, that defeats the purpose of the obscurity of the clear brackets, but it is kinds fun.

[xGa12yx]

I use Crest Total toothpaste along with some Arm & Hammer Whitening Booster. It works really good to keep your teeth nice and White. I know they said it's bad to use whitening products during braces treatment. But I had my teeth whitened a couple months before braces. So my ortho said it's okay because my teeth are the whitest it'll get so It would be a good idea to try and maintain the shade I currently have.

[rlpea]

I have a few silver ligs on and they are barely noticeable on my ceramics. My kids are all disappointed that I didn't get colors. Lol

[Rusty'sMom]

I have ceramic on top and metal on the bottom. At first I was pretty obsessed about the possibility of staining, but it really has not been a problem. I have switched to Pino Grigio (from Shiraz), and now drink ice coffee with a straw (used to be hot, black coffee). Also, I save my Italian and Mexican (hmm..spicy enchilada sauce!) cravings for a few days before my adjustment when I know my ligs will be changed! Use your water pik and brush... a lot!

[spritzzz]

I agree to just use straws. It saved me from a lot of staining. Also, you'll get the bands changed around every 6 weeks so the stains won't be there permanently if you do stain them.

[samsung]

Staining is exaggerated. Curry will cause minor discolouration but even that fades after a while

[ambraced]

My clear ligatures and power chain became bright yellow when I ate real indian curry. Normal curry mixture had less staining effect. At the moment I'm eating a lot of pomegranate which also stains but I try to push them to the back of my mouth so I managed not to stain the clear ligatures and clear powerchain over all my top teeth. Aren't whitening toothpastes harmful for frequent use? I'm under the impression they aren't good for the enamel.