Text Reminded Rubber Bands

We are in the first stages in beta testing a new way to get kids to wear their rubber bands.  Most teens, young adults and adults have their cell phones attached to their hip. Which means if their phone would remind them to put their rubber bands in they would not be able to say that they forgot them.

 Rubber bands are an important step in correcting your teeth's alignment.  To move teeth with rubber bands you need a slow continuous force.  When moving teeth with rubber bands it is the patient's responsibility to remember to put them in and wear them.  If a patient forgets to wear them it slows the process and can even double the time in braces.  When wearing elastic bands full time this means 20-23 hrs of the day with them in  the correct place.

The time that most patients forget them is after lunch until after dinner this means that the patient can lose anywhere from 1-6 hours of wear.  The best way to solve this problem is to have someone or something remind them that elastics wear is important and that they should have their bands in.

If you would like to help us test this new Rubber band reminder it is very simple all you have to do is text

@gotbands to (832) 900-4027. 

or if you would prefer email 

just email gotbands.mail.remind101.com

This will send you 3-4 text messages a day reminding you to put your bands in.  It can also tell you about upcoming events that are going on in out office and contests.

If you have any questions about this please email tara@centuryorthodontics.com

Why do I need Braces?

Why do I need braces?

Many of our patients come to us after seeing their dentist and they ask "why do I need braces?"  The answer to this question has many different answers.  Some reasons are obvious, you have crooked teeth, you don't like your smile or it hurts to bite but that isn't always the case with every patient.  Each patient is different and has different concerns with their teeth.  Only your orthodontist can tell you personally why you need braces.

Some of the purposes for having braces on teeth are:

• Straightening teeth- To align the teeth in an arch pattern so that it is easier to clean and chew. A bad        bite will have a negative impact on chewing, head and neck aches, as well as speech.
• Correcting Bites- Malocclusion are "Bad Bites," and have different terms to group them according to the bite alignment. 
• Cosmetic- These changes to your teeth will have no change in the functionality of your teeth but will enhance your smile.  Orthodontics for a cosmetic reason are to arrange the teeth in their correct place to obtain a "perfect" smile.

Reasons for straightening teeth:

• Straightening ones teeth makes it easier to chew and digest food.  
• Improvements to the roof of your mouth can help with breathing and reduce snoring.
• Having a beautiful smile brings confidence to the owner and makes others smile around you.

Patient with Over-Jet & Over Bite Before

After

Severe Crowding Before

After

Getting Blingy with It!

Silver and Bling

Some of our patients have been making our Century Orthodontic T-shirts more girly!  The girls have been putting anything from flowers to rhinestones. These girls are very talented.  If any of our patients would like to earn more coins they can decorate their T-shirt to fit their personality.  

Puff Paint

 Another patient took home an example invisalign  aligner and used it as a stamp and it turned out very cute.

Neons

Flowers

Nice teeth

Here is our newest Century T-Shirt designer

Nice job Gracie!

What Can I Eat with Braces?

Now that you have braces, what can you eat?

The first days in braces are more difficult to eat than normal.  We tell our patients that soft foods are easier to eat and chew than foods that are tough.  There will be a slight discomfort when you first get your braces on, so the action of chewing just makes it more painful.  Here are some GREAT IDEAS for the first three days in braces:
Breakfast foods

Scrambled Eggs

• Scrambled eggs                    
• Pancakes
• Oatmeal
• Cream of wheat
• Bananas
• Toast

Banana Recipe 

Lunch Foods

• Pudding
• Jello
• Spaghetti O's
• Ravioli's
• Cheese
• Grapes
• Brownies
• Hummus and Pita Bread
• Bananas, Sliced Apples, Raisins
• Breads 
• Soups

Dinner Foods

Veggie Soup

• Breakfast for Dinner
• Pastas
• Rice
• Hamburger Helper
• Soups
• Grilled Cheese
• Hamburgers & Fries
• Chili
• Cooked Veggies
• Softer Meats

Desserts & Snacks

• Pudding
• Jello
• Smoothies
• Milk Shakes 
• Ice Cream
• Brownies
• M&M's (Non-Frozen)
• Chocolate
• Popsicle
• Cinnamon rolls

The first days in braces are always the hardest.  At first some patients have a hard time eating their favorite foods.  We ask patients to chew softly and to remember that they have braces on before they aimlessly bite into anything.  To help keep the brackets on patients need to cut foods into smaller pieces about 1 inch squares.  This helps allow you to get the food to the back teeth so the patient is less likely to break brackets.  After the about 2-3 weeks patients find it easier and easier to eat more foods that they like.
We tell our patients that they can have anything that they want as long as it is not Sticky, Chewy, or Hard!  This means that there are quite a few foods our patients won't be allowed to eat while they are having fixed orthodontic care.

Are you on Pinterest? Here is a link to our Braces friendly foods board on Pinterest.

Things to AVOID:
          Sticky:

• Jolly Ranchers
• Taffys
• Caramel
• Bubble Gum

        Chewy:

• Airheads
• Now & Laters
• Skittles
• Starburst

        Hard:

• Uncut Apples and Fruit with hard centers
• Chicken Wings, Ribs and Meat with Bones  
• All of the above items need to be cut into pieces
• Pens, Pencils and fingernails should be kept out of your mouth and away from brackets
• Nuts, Hard Pretzels, Some Chips & other Crunchy foods
• Frozen candies in Ice Cream

Things that you didn't thing you could eat but CAN:

• You MAY chew SUGAR-FREE gum (We actually encourage it!)
• Popcorn (Try to limit popcorn to special occations due to the extra Oral Hygiene needed to remove from braces, teeth and gums)
• Chips ( You have to break them into smaller pieces)
• Soda (We ask that you limit soda to mealtimes and always rinse with water after consumption)

Here are just a few ideas to help get you started on the first few days in fixed orthodontic treatment.

RubberBand Reminder App

Do you want to get out of

your braces faster?

If yes, this is the app for you!

Rubber Band Reminder will send you alerts

to remind you to wear your rubber bands.

RubberBand Reminder

Will track you progress and display a graph

and a letter grade that you can show to your parents, friends or your orthodontist.

Do yourself a favor & Download

RubberBand Reminder NOW!

In addition, it has a setting called

“Challenge”

That will ask you through out the day whether or not you are wearing your rubberbands. You simply answer “Yes or No”.

AND YOU MUST BE HONEST!

THE BOTTOM LINE IS:

If you wear your rubberbands consistently you will get out of braces faster and that decreases cavities, scarring, bad breath and gum disease.

This shows your progress 

RubberBand Reminder App

This app is compatible with:

iphone, ipod touch,

ipad, & Android.

This app is available for around $2.00.

Patients who are struggling to remember to put their rubberbands in after lunch this app is great for you.  Patients that show that they have been doing better with their rubberbands with this app will receive an extra coin when they show the doctor or assistant their progress graph.  Patients will also be able to keep track of their appointments and know how long until their next appointment.  This will help keep them on track so that they don’t miss appointments and slow down treatment.  This app is great for the kids and adults who have a hard time with their bands. 

  

  

Alarm Challenger

This app sets alarms to go off when rubberbands are suppose to be replaced. This takes the guess work out of your rubberbands wear.

Sleeper Mode

This will allow you not to be challenged while you are sleeping or during the school day.

We ask that patients download at the chair side.

(Just like our patients forget to wear their bands, they will forget to download the app when they get home)

******This is a pay app so we ask for parent permission before you buy.  

Checklist Before Leaving the Orthodontist

Got my Braces on! What's Next?

Checklist For Every Appointment

There are routine steps that we ask you to take prior to leaving the office.  These steps will minimize discomfort related to irritation from the braces and ensure an optimal response to treatment.  Please make these steps a part of each office visit prior to leaving:

• Using your finger and tongue, check that wire ends do not extend into areas that could poke or pinch the cheek or tongue.
• Make sure you understand what you are to do until your next appointment.  This could include wearing headgear or elastic rubber bands as instructed, activating an expander or following specific hygiene or diet instructions.
• Make sure you have an adequate supply of orthodontic wax, special cleaning aids, rubber bands or other related materials that you may need between appointments.
• Always schedule your next appointment before leaving the office.  Waiting 1-2 weeks after an appointment to schedule your next office visit complicates the scheduling process.  Waiting too long often means we will not have the appointment time that you would like.  Postponing appointments is a common contributor to extending treatment.
• Make sure that your questions about treatment are answered.  Treatment goes better when everyone understands the treatment process.  We encourage parents to accompany their children to their appointments, allowing us the opportunity to update you on the treatment process.

Parents should always feel welcome to come back to the clinical area.  If you have any questions about your child's progress please ask.  Questions such as: "How much longer will my child be in braces?" will be much easier to answer if you are present when the doctor is checking your child's braces.

Why See the Dentist while in Braces

Importance of Regular Dental Check Ups

Orthodontic treatment should be a cooperative effort between the orthodontist, the patient and the family dentist.  Although we will advise you of any obvious dental decay, we as orthodontic professionals do not give our patients a dental examination for decay or gum problems. Your family dentist takes special cavity detecting x-rays and gives you your regular cleaning and fluoride treatments.  These services are the responsibility of your regular dentist, and we expect all patients to maintain their regular office visits with their dentist.  To facilitate these visits, patients in "braces" may come in to our office before going to the dentist to have the wires removed and replaced after their cleaning.  Please CALL us so we may coordinate these wires out /wires in visits with your scheduled visit date and your dental check up.