Braces and food

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beerfoamy
beerfoamy Posts: 1,521 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all

I shall soon be sporting some metal braces top and bottom. Looking at 18 months for treatment. This site has given me the phrase that is helping me to get my head round that. 'Time will pass anyway, may as well do something positive with it'

Also having a tooth out to help with the realignment. This is weirding me out too as why would you have a perfectly healthy tooth removed? lol but it will sort my bite out and allow for a more 'perfect' smile at the end so I am working on getting my head round that bit too. I had a removable brace as a kid and had the lisp and jaw ache so that won't be too much of a shock.

Anyways, reason for post.....I know apples are off the menu for a while (biggest annoyance really as I currently have 1 a day). As well as sugary stuff and crusty bread. (less of an issue)

Does anyone have experience of braces like this and can warn me of any other foods that make braces break/harder to clean?
Or alternatively any great foods that don't increase the risks/pain?

Thanks
:)





Replies

  • yesimpson
    yesimpson Posts: 1,372 Member
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    I never had any real issues with my braces, the only foods I avoided were corn on the cob and sticky, chewy sweets, as they were both a pain to clean out of the metal wires afterwards. Apples were OK to eat, just not the few days after the braces have been tightened.
    As long as you clean thoroughly and visit the dentist regularly I reckon you can eat most things. I used some metal toothpick-type things to help me to clean my teeth, and just paid particular attention to getting the harder to reach spots.
    The only ongoing issue I have had is that removal of the braces (where they actually secure to your teeth) caused some minor surface damage to my lower teeth, which means they stain more easily, but regular trips to the hygienist keep them white.
  • yesimpson
    yesimpson Posts: 1,372 Member
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    Also, I wore fixed braces for 2 years, and they made such a huge improvement to my confidence levels, so I think you've made a good decision.
  • beerfoamy
    beerfoamy Posts: 1,521 Member
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    @yesimpson - thanks that is really good to hear. It is daft I know but my brain has really fixated on the, 'not able to eat apples', even over cost, pain and 18 months treatment time!! haha
  • deputy_randolph
    deputy_randolph Posts: 940 Member
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    Don't eat anything sticky (obviously), like gum, taffy. I did pop off a bracket when I ate a peanut butter sandwich. A piece lodged between the wire and tooth.

    Anything that it is "hard" (like an apple), hurts to bite into, b/c your teeth can feel sensitive. I couldn't bite into an apple for a year after my braces were removed, b/c my roots were still sensitive. Get an acrylic retainer.
  • beerfoamy
    beerfoamy Posts: 1,521 Member
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    resurrecting this as it is only a week until I get braces fitted and I need yet more reassurances that I won't DIE! ¬_¬

    eek (although I paid everything upfront so am NOT backing out - am not am not)
    trying to focus on seeing the little changes, and of course losing weight during first couple of weeks! haha
  • sllm1
    sllm1 Posts: 2,114 Member
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    I think apples will be fine if you slice first and don't bite directly into them with your front teeth.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
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    It's not weird to have a perfectly healthy tooth removed, my daughter had 4 removed because she just has too small of a jaw to fit all her teeth. Also, I had most of my wisdom teeth removed at 21 because they didn't have enough room to come in all the way. So, removing healthy teeth is actually quite common if you have a small jaw.

    As for braces and food, after getting them on and after adjustments you may be super sore and need to stick to mostly soft foods. I would live off spaghettios and mac and cheese and vienna sausages for a few days after each adjustment. They usually use temperature sensitive wires now, so if your teeth really hurt drinking or eating something cold will give you a little relief - ice water and ice cream may become your best friends.

    popcorn is out unless you get the hulless varieties which can be hard to find (pirate's booty is a good sub)
    raw carrots and hard foods are out

    other fruits/veg, including apples, are usually ok as long as you don't bite into them, just cut them up first and then eat them

    anything cooked is usually soft enough not to be a problem
  • aeloine
    aeloine Posts: 2,163 Member
    edited September 2017
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    sllm1 wrote: »
    I think apples will be fine if you slice first and don't bite directly into them with your front teeth.

    Ditto. Don't BITE into them. I've had brackets fall off after biting into an apple, but slices were ok.

    Peanut butter will be tricky to clean out. Pop corn is a nightmare.

    Berries can be tough (seeds). Anything with a pit will be tough if you scrape your brackets along the pit. Meat will get stuck in the wires. Basically, ANYTHING you eat will be on display.


    That being said, it's an AMAZING decision and you won't regret it.

    ETA: wear your retainer. I'm 24 now and just finishing out 14 months in invisalign, even though I had braces in middle school.
  • beerfoamy
    beerfoamy Posts: 1,521 Member
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    138shades wrote: »
    make sure the brackets are placed low so they wont break as much.

    ooh can I tell dentist where to put them? or maybe suggest so I don't get in trouble! haha :) thanks- will mention this

    thanks everyone - this is calming my brain massively!

    @aeloine - yep think am getting the fixed retainer at the end, top and bottom.
    What's invisalign like? I nearly went for those, but I know myself well enough to know I wouldn't wear them enough!
  • aeloine
    aeloine Posts: 2,163 Member
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    beerfoamy wrote: »
    138shades wrote: »
    make sure the brackets are placed low so they wont break as much.

    ooh can I tell dentist where to put them? or maybe suggest so I don't get in trouble! haha :) thanks- will mention this

    thanks everyone - this is calming my brain massively!

    @aeloine - yep think am getting the fixed retainer at the end, top and bottom.
    What's invisalign like? I nearly went for those, but I know myself well enough to know I wouldn't wear them enough!

    I like the Invisalign better than traditional braces, but I'm also pretty consistent. It's actually not a pain in the butt AT ALL and I found that the wired braces were. All the flossing, wax, broken brackets, etc. With invisalign, you still floss but you're flossing your own teeth and not your teeth AND wires. Yes, invisalign still causes sores In your mouth, but the solution is to put your tray in so....

    Maybe I was just an impatient kid when I had the normal braces, but I remember them being torture :wink:
    The results we great, though!

    But again, wear your retainer AFTER the braces are off. #1 priority.
  • Cbean08
    Cbean08 Posts: 1,092 Member
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    I had braces, a full set of metal brackets and wires, for 6 consecutive years. My orthodontist didn't bother giving me a list of things I can't eat. He said I'd figure out how to eat the things I wanted and if I broke a bracket, to just come back in and he'd pop another one on. The only things I modified were corn (off the cob) and hard fruits/ veggies (eat them cut up, never whole.) I did drink a lot of smoothies and eat soft things for the day or so after I'd get them tightened. But, you get used to them and they are totally worth it.
  • Akijade
    Akijade Posts: 210 Member
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    Avoid hard or sticky things. You can still eat apples if you cut them up, but eating the whole thing without cutting it up also hurts with braces! Also, soft bread is a pain because it gets stuck. Be sure to keep a toothbrush on you until you get good at sucking the food out of your braces (I know it sounds gross, but it's faster/easier than brushing your teeth 5xday).

    Keep things like yogurt or pudding around for when you get your braces tightened. That was always a little painful for a few days afterwards.

    I will also say that for all of the annoyance of braces, they are 100% worth it. I got mine on and off over 10 years ago and I don't regret spending all that money. I love not being afraid to smile anymore! And now I smile a lot because it's an expensive smile. :)
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Surely your dentist can give you a list of goods to avoid?
  • beerfoamy
    beerfoamy Posts: 1,521 Member
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    lorrpb wrote: »
    Surely your dentist can give you a list of goods to avoid?

    they can yes, and have done. But I have a minor trust issue with dentists.... so although I know what they tell me is sense, I still can't quite bring myself to fully go with it.

    So every extra person that gives advice/experiences on the braces themselves and foods eaten while wearing them is helping my brain! :) thanks all!

    @aeloine - yeah, I can be consistent with majority of things, but I just think I'd be like, well that was a nice breakfast, now I have a snack at 11am, so I won't put the braces back in til after that............then it would be bed time and I would have worn them for an hour! haha

    @Akijade - didn't think soft bread would be a pain for sticking! thanks for that! :)

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