Eating with braces is more about HOW you eat, rather than WHAT you eat. Remember to take smaller bites and chew a bit more softly! Hard foods like Whole apples, carrots, pizza crusts and bagels should be cut up or sliced and chewed with the back teeth.
Avoid extremely hard things like nuts and hard candies, or chewing on ice or pen caps. You should also stay away from really sticky foods like taffy, toffee and caramels. You can continue to eat most of the foods you love including soft gummies and sugar-free bubble gum.Broken brackets = additional appointments and longer treatment time
GO FOR IT
SOFT/SMALL
- Avocado
- Bananas
- Mashed Potatoes
- Smoothies
- Ice Cream
- Soft Cookies
- Eggs
- Pasta
- Cheese
- Pancakes
- Soup
- Jell-O
NO-NO!
HARD/CHEWY/STICKY
- Popcorn
- Nuts
- Caramel
- Hard Candy
- Ice
- Beef Jerky
- Carrots
- Potato Chips
- Apples
- Corn on the Cob
- Sodas
Hard and/or sticky foods may bend wires and loosen glue which leads to broken brackets. Sticky foods may damage the appliance by bending wires and loosening the cement.
Avoid foods high in sugar whenever possible. If you do eat sugary food, eat it at the end of the meal and brush after the end of your meal. When it is not convenient to brush, always rinse your mouth out with water after sugary foods and beverages.
