While wearing orthodontic appliances, the majority of foods in a healthy diet are safe to eat. There are, however, a number of foods that orthodontic patients should minimize or avoid.
We suggest that you:
- Minimize sugary foods that cause cavities. These include cake, ice cream, cookies, pie and candy.
- Limit drinks with sugar, such as soda, sweetened tea, Gatorade or Kool-Aid.
- Avoid hard foods that can break or damage wires and brackets, and sticky foods that can get caught between brackets and wires.
- Nail biting, pencil or pen chewing and chewing on foreign objects should also be avoided.
Foods to be careful of when eating:
- Nuts.
- French bread crust/rolls.
- Bagels.
- Chips.
- Pizza crust.
- Apples (cut into slices).
- Uncooked carrots (cut into small pieces or grated).
Sticky foods to avoid:
- All gum.
- Licorice.
- Sugar Daddies.
- Toffee.
- Tootsie Rolls.
- Caramels.
- Starburst.
Hard foods to avoid:
- Ice.
- Any hard candy, such as Jolly Ranchers.
It's important to regularly check your braces for bent or loose wires and brackets. In the event of a loose/broken wire or bracket, please call our office to schedule an appointment for the repair.