Things You Can’t Eat With Braces
I’ve put on the list things that my dentist told me from the very beginning not to eat, and I’ve stayed away from them, and some others, which I’ve tried and caused me a lot of pain. Of course, various people react differently, so you might get away with eating some of the things on my list. At least it gets a bit easier in time, so things I couldn’t eat during the first two weeks of wearing braces became more acceptable later on. For others, I got used to how how to cut and prepare them before eating.
popcorn
hard chips
tortilla chips
corn chips (Ok, in fact, I can’t eat any sort of chips, but I’ve seen many people do better then me.)
gummies
hard candy
gum
bubble gum ? Perhaps you don’t think bubble gum deserves a separate entry from regular gum, but try cleaning the gum off your braces and then think again.
nuts ? Replace them with processed products, such as chestnut puree instead of actual chestnuts. It’s not as good, especially if you liked to eat nuts very much, as was my case, but at least it’s something.
corn on the cob
onion and garlic ? This may not be very obvious, but trust me, the stench stays on your braces for weeks! Stay away from any foods that smell.
ice ? When my doctor told me not to chew on ice, I was surprised. Who does that? Now, that I have to pay attention, I’ve discovered that I do that a lot, unconsciously, when drinking iced soda, so I stopped putting ice in my drinks altogether.
apples ? At least not whole apples, you’ll have to cut them in bite-sized bits. Same goes for all hard pieces of fruit, such as pears that are not very ripe and so on.
very cold drinks
very hot drinks
Skittles
caramel and licorice
seeds ? Sees are a huge threat. They’re small and hard, a deadly combination for braces, and, if they get stuck somewhere, they may dislodge the braces and cause them to stick in a position that could harm your teeth even more.
beef jerky
caramel apple ? Well, you can’t eat caramel, and you can’t eat apples, so put them together and you get something you really shouldn’t touch. Sigh. Same goes for chocolate covered peanuts. Double sigh.
spinach ? A bit of good news, in a way. In fact, you can eat spinach with braces, but just not in public, and only somewhere where you can go and clean your teeth immediately. It’s really disgusting to have green bits sticking from your mouth.
pesto sauce ? Same as the above, only it’s worse, trust me.
raw carrots ? Steam or sautee them lightly before. Same goes for broccoli, cauliflower and so on.
soda ? This is dangerous because it can wear off the glue that keeps the braces in place, and thus cost you one more visit to the dentist to have your braces re-attached.
chicken wings ? You’ll have to cut the meat from the bone, if you want to eat them. Have you tried asking for a fork and a knife in a fast-food joint? They look like you’ve just landed an alien ship there.
meat right from the bone ? No more tasty ribs for me.
hard cookies ? You can soften them in tea or milk, but I feel like an old lay when doing that. And again, it’s pretty disgusting to do it in public.
pizza crust ? I always thought that people who cut off their pizza crust are just show offs, but now I find that I have to do it as well.
pretzels
crackers
taffy
citrus fruit ? For the days immediately after having the braces installed or re-attached, it’s very painful.
bagels, hard rolls and French bread crust
whole grains ? This is really annoying, because the best breakfast cereals available out there now are made with whole grains, that don’t soften enough in milk.
dried fruit ? Almost all varieties, but in particular figs.
pickles
soft cheese ? Not all, but certain types stick to the teeth and it’s a pain to clean it off.
toast ? My toaster was the most used kitchen appliance before I got my braces on! Now it’s just gathering dust in a corner.
fingernails ? I know it sounds funny, but if you have that nasty habit of biting your fingernails, you have to get rid of it before having your braces installed.
pens and pencils ? I spend a lot of time writing, and I find myself very often chewing on the ends of pens and pencils. Now, of course, I can’t do it anymore.
