One of the first questions orthodontic patients and their families ask Dr. Kemp and his team at Kemp Orthodontics is, "What can I eat while I have braces on my teeth?" That answer is, "Almost everything!" Just with a few exceptions.
While you wear your braces or other orthodontic appliances, you will want to choose foods that are more soft and easily chewed, and you might limit certain types of foods that are sticky, hard, crunchy, or brittle. Great food choices for orthodontic patients include--
Meats/poultry - soft-cooked chicken, meatballs, lunch meats, even steaks and chops if you cut them into tiny bite-sized pieces;
Seafood - fish including tuna, salmon, crab and crab cakes;
Vegetables - mashed potatoes, peas, yams, steamed spinach, beans, and, if you cut them into tiny pieces, you can have corn, celery, and carrots
Fruits - any soft fruit like bananas, grapes, kiwi, peaches, even apples if you cut them into tiny bite-sized pieces
Dairy - pudding, soft cheeses
Breads – sliced lunch bread, soft tortillas, pancakes, muffins w/o nuts, biscuits
Grains – noodles, pasta, soft-cooked rice
Treats - ice cream without nuts, milkshakes, smoothies, Jell-O, cake
Other – eggs, hamburgers, chili, beans and much more
Candy treats and chewing gum are not only bad for your health, but they are really bad for your braces. These foods can break your braces, which will add more time to your orthodontic treatment. Dr. Kemp suggests you completely avoid these snacks:
- BUBBLE GUM
- CARAMELS
- GUMMY BEARS
- CORN CHIPS
- AIRHEADS
- TAFFY
- HARD WHOLE NUTS
- POPCORN
- TOOTSIE ROLLS
- SNICKERS
- NOW AND LATERS
- PAY DAYS
- BLOW POPS
- HARD CANDY
This list is just a guideline for foods to avoid. Just remember that while your braces are powerful enough to give you a great smile, each little brace is delicate if you try to use it to tear, chomp, or bite off foods. Choose your food wisely, cut it into tiny pieces, and chew on your back teeth. Soon those braces will be off and reveal a gorgeous new smile!
