If you’ve ever felt self-conscious about crooked teeth, you owe it to yourself to request an appointment with our dentist. Dr. Stephanie Busch-Abbate offers both ® clear aligners and traditional metal braces to help patients straighten teeth.
Both types of orthodontic treatment have their pros and cons. For example, you are able to eat whatever you want with ClearCorrect aligners, as you take them out of your mouth to chew. If you opt for traditional metal braces, however, you’ll need to be careful with what you eat. Continue reading to learn what foods you should avoid with .
What Can I Eat with Braces on the First Day?
When you first get your dental braces, you may not want to eat food that requires a lot of chewing. This is normal. When you first get braces, you’ll feel pressure on your teeth that will go away after a few days. The good news is that once you get used to wearing teeth braces, the pain won’t be as bad when you return to our office for adjustments.
During this adjustment period, it may help to eat soft foods in order to reduce the strain on your teeth. We recommend soups, yogurts, shakes, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, and other soft foods. Once the pain subsides, continue staying away from foods that are sticky and/or hard to chew.
Can I Eat __________ With Braces?
When they first receive their braces, patients are often concerned about whether they’ll be able to eat:
- Pizza: Thin-crust pizza is usually easier for patients with braces to eat. Thick crust can be difficult to chew while wearing dental braces. If you have no control over what pizza is ordered, eat the pizza, but leave the thick crust behind.
- French Fries: As long as they aren’t burnt to a blackened crisp, French fries should be safe for your traditional metal braces. Chew with caution if you encounter any particularly crunchy fries.
- Chips: Most chips are fine, but use your best judgement. Ripple potato chips and pita chips tend to be harder to chew than thinner potato chips.
- Bread: Stay away from croutons, french bread, hard rolls, and other breads that are difficult to chew, as these may break your braces. Soft breads are fine, although the bread might get stuck in your braces. Be sure to thoroughly clean your teeth after eating soft bread.
- Steak and Chicken: Since meat can be stringy, it’s easy to get little pieces stuck between teeth. We recommend cutting meat into bite-sized pieces. If possible, choose meats that are lean and tender.
- Salad: Salads are just fine with dental braces. Just skip the croutons if they look too crunchy!
- Chocolate: Chocolate is safe to eat with braces, but you may want to limit how much chocolate and other sweets you eat during orthodontic treatment. Cavities and gum disease are caused by plaque, an invisible film of bacteria that loves sugar. When sugar is left behind, plaque uses it to produce cavity-causing acid.
Hopefully by now, you’ve recognized a pattern. You should avoid foods that are sticky and/or hard to chew during orthodontic treatment. The last thing you want is to pull off a bracket by accident because you thought you’d take your chances with a piece of taffy.
Ask Us About ClearCorrect Braces
Since ClearCorrect braces are removable, you’ll be able to continue eating whatever you want during orthodontic treatment. Just make sure you brush your teeth after you eat so you don’t stain your clear aligners. Being able to eat an unrestricted diet is one reason patients choose ClearCorrect over traditional metal braces.
Keep in mind that not all our patients are candidates for ClearCorrect. To be a candidate you must be a teenager or adult who has the willpower to wear aligners. Otherwise, the temptation will be too great to remove your new pair of ClearCorrect braces when they hurt during the first few days. Teens and adults are usually motivated enough to work past the temporary discomfort to achieve the smiles they’ve always wanted.
Want to Learn More?
If you’re interested in straighter teeth, feel free to request an appointment online or by phone at (269) 381-3890 so we can help you get started with braces. As your dentist, Dr. Stephanie Busch-Abbate is here to help you regain confidence in your smile.