Orthodontic Wax: What It Is and How to Use It on Braces

Orthodontic wax is a soft, food-safe wax sold in small cases at pharmacies and given out by orthodontists. It is not a treatment. It is a smooth cover that sits between a sharp or rough part of the braces and the soft lining of your lips, cheeks or tongue.

It helps most in the first weeks after fitting, when the inside of the mouth has not yet toughened, and after an adjustment when a new wire end sits where the old one did not. It also helps with a bracket edge that catches the lip, and, with lingual braces, a rough bracket that rubs the tongue. The soreness caused by tooth movement itself is a different problem, described in do braces hurt.

Wash your hands, and brush your teeth first if you can. Wax sticks to a dry surface and not to a wet one, so dry the bracket or wire with a tissue or a clean cotton bud.

Pinch off a piece about the size of a small pea and roll it between your fingers into a ball. Warmth from your fingers softens it. Flatten the ball slightly, then press it over the bracket or wire end that is causing the problem, covering it completely and smoothing the edges so your lip does not catch on it.

Run your tongue or lip over the area. If it still feels rough, add a little more. If it feels bulky, you have used too much. Wax tends to slide off the wire itself, so press it onto the bracket where it has something to grip.

Take the wax off before you eat. It will stick to food, come loose, and make it harder to clean the area afterwards. Remove it with your fingers, throw it away, brush and clean around the brackets as in how to brush with braces, and put a fresh piece on afterwards.

Do not leave one piece on overnight if you can avoid it. Plaque and food can collect under it. If you have to sleep with wax on, keep the piece small and clean the area carefully in the morning. Wax is cheap, so using a new piece each time is better than reusing an old one.

Swallowing a small piece of wax is harmless. The wax is non-toxic and passes through the gut without trouble, so there is no need to worry or to make yourself sick.

Seek help if a piece has been breathed in, if you are coughing or struggling to breathe, or if you swallowed a bracket, a band or a piece of wire rather than wax. A swallowed bracket usually passes, but if you have pain, vomiting or difficulty swallowing, see a doctor, and go to a hospital emergency department straight away if breathing or swallowing is affected.

Silicone covers are small, soft caps or strips made to sit over brackets, and some people find them neater than wax because they stay in place longer and are less sticky. Ask your orthodontist or pharmacist what is available. Cheek-friendly strips that clip over a rubbing area are also sold.

In an emergency, a small piece of damp cotton wool pressed against the bracket can work for an hour or two. Do not use chewing gum, tape or dental floss as a cover, and never snip a protruding wire yourself, because the cut end can be sharper and you may swallow it.

Mouth soreness from new braces settles within a few weeks, and wax is a fair way to wait it out. But if wax keeps falling off the same spot, or if the pain is sharp and one-sided, the cause is probably mechanical: a wire end that has slipped out of its bracket, a bracket that has come loose, or a wire that has become too long as the teeth move.

A poking wire, a broken or loose bracket, or a cut that does not heal should be looked at, as described in braces side effects. Treatment also stalls while a bracket is off. Seek same-day care for facial swelling or fever. Call the clinic if you are unsure, and see the braces and orthodontics page for how treatment runs.