Avoid These Foods If You’ve Got Braces!

The technology we have of braces has gotten better and better as time goes on, but sometimes there are still things you just won’t be able to change about them, and the number one thing that falls under that category is the types of food you shouldn’t eat when having braces.

And if this all revolved around just food getting caught in your braces and it being annoying, that would be fine. That’s not the problem, though. It’s because food can actually damage your braces, the wires, or the rubber bands. Luckily, if you simply steer clear of sticky foods and anything else that is really hard or too chewy, you should be just fine.

Let’s take a look at the biggest banes of braces everywhere.

Hard candies

These are sticky. They’re chock full of sugar. They can break teeth because of how hard they are. There’s just not much good going for these candies outside of being tasty to your kids. It’s best to keep these away from your kids even if they don’t have braces but especially so if they do.

Popcorn

You probably hear this all the time, but popcorn is the best at getting stuck between not only braces but teeth in general. Just avoid popcorn during the time being or try your darndest to chew it on the sides of your mouth if possible. (But really, staying away from it is likely your best option.)

Ice

Even though this isn’t sticky and won’t “mess up” your braces because of its chemical makeup, ice is super hard and super cold, meaning it’s quite easy to “freeze” your rubber bands and then damage them when you’re chewing on hard ice.

Corn chips & hard crackers or cookies

These are junk food anyway, so first off, you may as well try to get rid of this in your diet in general. But also, they’re hard enough to dislodge or break braces rubber bands, get stuck in between your braces and teeth, or chip away at some of the wiring within your braces.

Gum

Gum is probably the worst at getting in between your braces and messing things up royally. If there’s any item on this list that you should remove from what you eat or chew on, it’s gum. If you need a fresh breath for any reason at all, get yourself some mints and eschew the chewing gum.