Eating with Braces

For most situations, common sense will tell you which foods you should try to resist. Hard foods, sticky foods and foods that are high in sugar should be avoided. While the bonding agent we use is very strong, hard foods tend to break or damage the wires and brackets. Sticky foods can easily get caught in between your brackets and wires.  Finally, while we know that chocolate glazed doughnut is calling your name, you should minimize sugary foods since they cause tooth decay and other related problems.

Here are a few more suggestions when it comes to eating with braces.

• Try taking smaller bites.
• Limit the consumption of soda and sugary drinks.
• Before eating corn, try cutting it off of the cob.
• Avoid chewing ice which tends to break brackets.
• Avoid biting on pen caps and pencils.
• Avoid chewing your fingernails.

We hope this simple list helps you to properly plan what to eat and not eat when in orthodontic treatment.