Food To Avoid While Wearing Braces

Wearing braces can make it difficult to eat certain foods. Certain foods can get stuck in your braces, cause pain, and lead to cavities. Listed below are some food to avoid while wearing braces.

Sticky Foods

Any food that gets stuck between the teeth will prolong your adjustment process and cause plaque buildup. For the first few days, stick to softer foods like soup, pasta, mashed potatoes, and eggs. Avoid sticky or hard foods that might break brackets or damage wires, such as chewy candies, gum, nuts, popcorn kernels, and hard pretzels.

It's best to avoid carbonated beverages as well, as carbonation can seep between teeth and cause more decay. If you do drink soda, drink it through a straw so the liquid bypasses your teeth altogether.

If you're looking for something sweet, choose soft options like ice cream, pudding, or gelatin. Sugar-free gummy bears work well too! If you're craving crunchy snacks, try cucumber slices, celery sticks, or carrots.

Hard Foods

During your treatment, try to avoid any hard foods like nuts, candy, popcorn, ice, chips, and cookies.

If you do eat something, you shouldn't, be sure to thoroughly brush and floss your teeth to dislodge the food particles. You can also rinse your mouth with water to help remove any small particles and larger chunks from your teeth. If you experience pain after eating something crunchy or sticky, contact your dentist right away. It's possible that you may have damaged the soft tissue or the enamel on your teeth.

Sugary Foods

There are some foods to avoid while you have braces, especially when it comes to eating sugary or sticky foods. Hard candies, caramel, and other sweet treats can cause damage to your braces and lengthen your treatment time. Take special care when eating anything sticky or chewy, as these types of food can get trapped in between your teeth and the brackets of your braces and cause tooth decay. 

Chewy Foods

It's normal to want to avoid chewy, sticky foods when you have braces. Your brackets and wires can easily become damaged while you are eating sugary or acidic food. Your teeth and jaw may also become less aligned or even move out of alignment if you eat too many foods that require a lot of chewing. 

If you have any questions, be sure to contact our office. We're happy to help!