Orthodontists work with adolescents, teens, and adults who need braces to help correct dental issues like crooked teeth, gaps, overbites, and underbites. Braces require lifestyle adjustments that include a change in eating habits. Eating the wrong things can cause food to stick to braces and damage braces.
Getting braces is an adjustment to your smile and your eating habits. Contact Precision Orthodontics & Pediatric Dentistry in Reston to learn more about life with braces. Call us today at (703) 391-8800 for information about our services or schedule an appointment.
While wearing braces, it is important to make some changes in what you eat. During the early weeks, you are adjusting to soreness and your changing bite. It may be challenging to eat some of the foods you love. Typically, it takes around a month for a patient to get used to their braces. Here are several examples of foods you can eat:
You can still enjoy many foods while wearing braces, but some you should avoid. These foods can break appliances, bands, brackets, or wires, and this damage slows down the treatment process. The majority of damage to braces occurs on the back molars. Avoid all chewy, crunchy, gooey, and sticky foods. Examples of foods you cannot eat include:
Meal-planning with braces does not have to involve bland or boring foods. You can eat many soft and delicious foods without damaging your braces. For example, you can eat cooked rice, soft tortillas, pasta, noodles, and soup. Other choices include soft bread that does not have a hard crust, pancakes, soft-cooked beans, soft-baked goods, and soft cheeses.
You can enjoy many snack options too. Pudding and Jell-O are obvious choices, along with milkshakes and ice cream. You can also eat blueberries, grapes, melons, oranges, and raspberries. When trying to decide whether or not food is safe to eat, avoid hard or sticky foods.
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It is critical to choose soft foods that are easy to chew when wearing braces. Damage can cause abrasions, cuts, and discomfort inside your mouth. If you do not schedule an appointment with your orthodontist to fix issues, your treatment will be less effective. Use wax to cover up sharp spots. Eating hard foods can cause wires to bend. If that happens, bands cannot adjust teeth into position. Contact your orthodontist immediately to fix the problem.
Q. What foods can I eat with braces?
Q. Are there foods I cannot eat when wearing braces?
Q. Are there dietary guidelines I should follow when wearing braces?
Q. What should I do if the foods I eat cause wear to my brackets or the bands?
Q. Is there anything I can do about the soreness I feel when I eat with braces?
Braces hurt when you chew because they are pulling and pushing your teeth. You can ease the discomfort by drinking ice water or milk. Eating cold treats like ice cream or frozen yogurt can also help you deal with soreness.
If you are eating and feel sharp wires poking your mouth, orthodontic wax may provide relief. You can help prevent gum inflammation by practicing good oral hygiene. Over-the-counter pain medication can also help with pain and discomfort while chewing.
Q. Can I eat food the same way I did before getting braces?
A. The recommendation is to cut food up into smaller pieces. Doing this helps you avoid damaging your braces when biting into larger chunks of food. Eating an apple is a good example. Instead of biting directly into the whole apple, cut it down into smaller manageable pieces or slices.
Q. Do I have to stop chewing gum when I get braces?
A. Because gum sticks to the braces, the recommendation is not to chew it when wearing them. Chewing sugary gum can also cause cavities. Talk to your orthodontist about how gum can damage braces and which types are more likely to cause cavities.
Q. What do I do if a bracket comes off when I'm eating?
A. Even if you are eating safe foods with braces, brackets can still pop off accidentally. If the bracket is loose, clean around it, and try keeping it in place with wax. If it completely pops off, then remove it from the wire. In both cases, contact your orthodontist right away to either replace or re-attach the bracket.
Q. Does my orthodontist provide a list of what I can't eat with braces?
A. When you get braces, your orthodontist provides a comprehensive list of food you should avoid. They will give you a complete set of instructions on how to prevent emergency appointments or repairs. It is always recommended you avoid hard, chewy, or sticky foods.
Q. Should I make any changes to my oral hygiene routine?
A. Brushing your teeth every time you eat becomes even more important while wearing braces because the wires and brackets can trap food particles more easily. Dentists recommend you use interdental brushes and floss threaders to clean between your teeth while wearing braces.
By visiting us as soon as possible, our team can help get you the professional treatment you need. Instead of waiting around and allowing the symptoms to get worse, we can provide you with treatment options.
Keeping your teeth healthy with braces starts with knowing what you can and cannot eat. At Precision Orthodontics & Pediatric Dentistry, we help with dietary suggestions while wearing braces. Call us today at (703) 391-8800 to for more information or schedule an appointment.
