Eating Habits and Orthodontics

Much work and effort has gone into the construction and placement of your orthodontic appliances. We encourage you to take care of your braces by keeping them clean and being careful with the types of foods you put in your mouth. Breakage of your braces results in extra appointments (usually during school hours) for repairs and will lengthen the total time of your treatment. Please read the following information and ask us for any clarification. Please take whatever medicine you would normally take for headaches, and other pains.

Watch Out For …

Hard Foods: Hard foods may cause damage by bending the wires, loosening the cement under the bands or breaking the brackets that are bonded to the teeth. Some examples of those foods are listed below along with the ways that they may be eaten: Carrots or Celery: Grate, cook or cut into thin pieces. Apples: Cut into bite size pieces. French Bread, Hard Rolls, Bagels: Avoid hard crusts. Corn on the cob, Chicken, Ribs: Cut off cob or bone. Please Do Not Eat: Nuts, Hard Pretzels, Hard Pizza Crust or Hard Chips. Top Half (but not the bottom half) of the popcorn bag or bowl is ok. CHEWING ICE CUBES IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN!!         STICKY FOODS Sticky foods can damage the appliances by bending wires and loosening the cement, actually pulling them off the teeth.

PLEASE DO NOT EAT:

Taffy Sugar Daddies Peanut Brittle Caramels Candy Apples Licorice or any of the currently popular types of sticky candies such as Starbursts or Now & Laters

The only gum permissible is one stick at a time of sugarless gum – no regular gum or bubblegum of any kind, please.

FOODS HIGH IN SUGAR CONTENT should be limited. The germs (bacteria) that cause tooth decay, decalcification and gum disease need sugary food on your teeth in order to live. Please brush your teeth immediately after each meal, since most of the damage occurs within the first half hour after eating.

GUMS THAT BLEED NEED MORE BRUSHING – DO NOT AVOID THEM. Please use the pocket toothbrush which we have given you when you are away from home (at school etc…).

"Hang in there, the braces will feel better in four to five days." - Dr. B