What can and can't I eat with braces?

Here are some guidelines for care of your teeth, braces and other appliances during treatment.

Inspecting Your Braces

Cleaning Your Teeth

Eating Correctly

Forbidden Foods

Wearing Your Elastics

Changing Your Elastics

Wearing Your Headgear

Removing Your Headgear

Wearing Your Retainer

Cleaning Your Retainer

Storing Your Retainer

Inspecting Your Braces

Once a week, carefully check your braces for loose, bent and broken parts ( click here to see the parts of braces ) and contact us right away so we can arrange a brief appointment to repair the problem. At the same time, make sure you have enough rubber bands to last you until your next appointment. We’ll mail replacements to you, or you may pick up a fresh supply at either of our offices.

Contact us any time with questions about your braces.

Cleaning Your Teeth

There’s no doubt that braces make it harder to keep your teeth clean. Food gets stuck inside brackets and between teeth, so if you’re not extra careful, plaque will form on your teeth. Plaque can cause decay, gum disease and discoloration. The only way to remove food residue and plaque is by brushing properly after every meal and flossing daily.

We recommend you use a soft toothbrush to brush in small circles above and below each bracket ( click here for a demonstration ). Keep extra toothbrushes on hand to replace yours whenever the bristles become frayed. An electric toothbrush is an excellent tool, as is a Waterpik used in conjunction with a toothbrush.

There is no substitute for flossing ( click here for a demonstration ) to dislodge plaque and food particles between your teeth and below your gum line. Reusable floss threaders can help you get the floss over and around brackets and wires.

Contact us any time with questions about keeping your teeth clean.

Eating Correctly

We rely on you to use common sense about the foods you eat while you are wearing braces so that your treatment stays on schedule. Hard, chewy and sticky foods ( see Forbidden Foods ) may bend or break your brackets or wires or pull the cement loose, so stay away from them. By the same token, biting your nails and chewing on pens and pencils are bad for your braces. Choose good nourishing food to build strong bones and gums and healthy, cavity-free teeth. Never fear…you won’t starve. We will share ideas with you about many foods you can eat.

Forbidden Foods

Hard candy

Caramel

Taffy

Hard bread crusts

Pizza crust

Hard nuts

Tacos

Tortilla chips

Corn Nuts

Popcorn

Jerky

Corn on the cob

Dried fruit

Cut these into bite-sized pieces:

Bagels

Apples

Raw carrots

Raw celery

Avoid chewing:

Gum

Ice

Bones

Be aware of the hidden sugar in:

Jelly

Syrup

Honey

Sugared cereals

Breakfast rolls

Catsup

Desserts

Sodas

Brush your teeth immediately after eating sweets. If you are unable to brush, rinse your mouth with water.

Wearing Your Elastics (Rubber Bands)

Elastics create the gentle force that moves your teeth into alignment, so you must wear them at all times to keep the force constant, and change them several times a day so they don’t lose elasticity. The brackets and hooks on your teeth are only there to hold the elastics, so if you don’t wear them as instructed, your treatment plan won’t work.

The only time you may take off your elastics is when you eat or brush your teeth. Replace them immediately.

Contact us right away if a wire or band seems loose, a hook breaks, or your rubber bands frequently break. These problems should be corrected as soon as possible to keep your treatment moving forward smoothly.

Changing Your Elastics (Rubber Bands)

It’s a good idea to establish a daily schedule for changing your elastics and to carry extras with you at all times so you can replace broken or loose rubber bands right away. Contact us whenever you are running low on elastics and we will mail you a new supply.

Two elastics are not better than one! If you miss a day, don’t double up the next day to make up for it. Stay on your regular routine, but do let us know at your next appointment if you’ve been off schedule.

Wearing Your Headgear

Headgear works hand in hand with braces so you must wear it consistently to get the job done. Your doctor will give you instructions about when and when not to wear it. Please follow these instructions exactly. Remember, you may never wear headgear when you are running or playing sports.

Contact us any time with questions about your headgear.

Removing Your Headgear

Headgear attaches to your braces with springs, so you have to be careful when you take it off. Always disconnect the springs first before you remove your headgear.

Contact us any time with questions about your headgear.

Wearing Your Retainer

Faithfully follow your orthodontist’s instructions for wearing your retainer. Usually this means twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for as long as the doctor specifies. The only exceptions are when you are eating, swimming, or playing active sports. Your retainer is custom-fitted to you to complete the job your braces began. If you don’t wear it, your teeth could return toward their original position.

Contact us any time with questions about your retainer.

Cleaning Your Retainer

Clean your retainer after meals by thoroughly brushing it with toothpaste. Once a week, use denture cleaner to clean it more thoroughly. If it needs to be disinfected, bring it in to our office and we will sterilize it for you. NEVER boil your retainer to sterilize it; boiling may warp the plastic.

Wire retainers bonded behind your front teeth must be brushed carefully to clean both the wire and the teeth.

Contact us any time with questions about your retainer.

Storing Your Retainer

Retainers are easily lost and broken. To avoid losing or damaging yours, keep it in its storage case when it’s not in your mouth. Never wrap it in a paper napkin or tissue, or carry it loose in your pocket or purse. Keep it away from animals—they have been known to mistake retainers for chew toys. Dogs love them! Don’t let your retainer sit near a heater, stove or other source of heat, because heat may warp the plastic. If you lose or damage your retainer, you will be charged to repair or replace it.

Contact us any time with questions about your retainer

Ha! I have had braces for almost 4 years now. They tell you not to eat corn on the cob, tootsie rolls or bite into apples. I learned that you eat mainly what you want. Just stay away from the gooey stuff like starburst, carmel apples, stuff like that. Actually, chewing gum is good. The excess food you didn't get while brushing gets stuck to the gum, and its also good to chew if you don't have a toothbrush. Stick to trident which makes your teeth white and smells good. Finally, you should try to floss with that special in-between-ur-brackets floss that has a stiff end so u can put them between ur teeth easily, and to use scope which eliminates the bad-breath particles that could still be in your mouth. I hope this helps.

It's nearly impossible to give you a list. But use your common sense. Don't eat anything that might get stuck to the braces - like gum or taffy. Really thinking back, I think the only think I was prohibited from eating/chewing was gum and even that I used to chew the gum that was safe for denture wearers - it didn't stick as much.

Just make sure you really brush your teeth after every meal. Stuff does get stuck in them and can get really gross if you don't.

Well, I have been wearing braces for more than a year and I think u should avoid any food that involves too much tearing..like chicken but u can cut it into pieces and then eat it. Even avoid biting an apple..cut it into smaller pieces. Once u get the hang of it, u will know what to eat. It's not really a big deal. At the start, I was worried too, but it's not very serious.

Hard foods-

Anything that is hard cannot be chewed with braces on. Remember, braces are fragile, and strong forces from hard foods will break them off. Damaged appliances will extend treatment time. Extended treatment time will increase the risk of cavities and stains on your teeth.

Sticky foods-

Braces can be pulled apart with sticky foods. Again, this could extend your treatment time.

Anything high in sugar-

Braces make it harder to keep your teeth clean. Sugar will feed the bacteria that cause cavities. If you do eat any foods high in sugar, brush your teeth immediately.

EXAMPLES OF WHAT TO AVOID

Ice....Definitely NO!! It totally destroys braces.

Nuts

Peanut brittle

Hard pizza crust

Corn on the cob

Ribs

Doritos, corn chips, hard tacos, cheetos, fritos and the like

Popcorn

Hard pretzels

Hard rolls and bagels

Raw carrots

Bubble gum

Carmel candy

Beef jerky

Suckers

This is just a small list. Remember, nothing hard, sticky, or sweet!

i can't eat corn on the cobb easily, but gum is also a challenge. you can eat or drink anythig you want, orthodontists use braces as an excuse to tell you not to drink soda and chew gum. DON'T EAT POPCORN!!! it has made brackets pop off a lot because when it is only half popped the hard kernel pops the bracket off with the force of your jaw crunching the kernel down. apples are really tough- don't try them.

It's nearly impossible to give you a list. But use your common sense. Don't eat anything that might get stuck to the braces - like gum or taffy. Really thinking back, I think the only think I was prohibited from eating/chewing was gum and even that I used to chew the gum that was safe for denture wearers - it didn't stick as much.

Just make sure you really brush your teeth after every meal. Stuff does get stuck in them and can get really gross if you don't.

** and in the future, when your braces are off - take my advice - wear your retainer. I didn't and my teeth are all moving again**

i had braces for 4 years and 15 days. I stayed away from Taffy, Caramel, anything that appears hard but when chewed, become gooey or sticky. bubble gum is okay as long as you make sure it doesn't get ultra sticky because if it sticks you will be stuck in front of a mirror with a toothpick, and your toothbrush. Also you can ask your dentist/orthodontist (braces dr) for a mini brush, it kinda looks like a "pipe cleaner" <looks like the kind most women use in crafts.) it has a long stick like a toothbrush but the end is a wire with bristles coming out. sorta like the small end of a baby bottle cleaner. i hope this helps you, if you want someone to talk to about this feel free to contact me.

Cannot Eat

1. Gum

2. Hard candy

3. Curry (stains braces)

4. Whole apples

5. Sugary sweets

6. Cut back on soda

it depends. You can't eat caramel apples, those big sticky tart gum thingies, popcorn(cuz the seeds can get stuck in the brackets), anything that might break the brackets. Corn on the cob won't hurt it I ate it when I had braces. Check with your orthodontist or do a google search "what not to eat with braces", I'm sure you'll find something.

We rely on you to use common sense about the foods you eat while you are wearing braces so that your treatment stays on schedule. Hard, chewy and sticky foods ( see Forbidden Foods ) may bend or break your brackets or wires or pull the cement loose, so stay away from them. By the same token, biting your nails and chewing on pens and pencils are bad for your braces. Choose good nourishing food to build strong bones and gums and healthy, cavity-free teeth. Never fear…you won’t starve. We will share ideas with you about many foods you can eat.