whos had braces???

elly0001
elly0001 Posts: 191
edited September 30 in Food and Nutrition
what foods were u able to eat without damaging your braces???
the orthodontist gave me a list of foods which will apparently damage my braces..seems a bit extreme tho! how hard/chewy do things have to be to damage them?

Replies

  • SparkleShine
    SparkleShine Posts: 2,001 Member
    I had them at 30! You really do have to careful because the brackets can pop off! I would especially stay away from any hard or chewy candy, corn on the cob, biting into and fruits.
  • hard chewey things such as taffy will stick to the braces and when you try to pull it off, it could and most likely will pull the wire with it... and it HURTS... now, things like tootsie rolls... no biggie...
  • heather7marie
    heather7marie Posts: 506 Member
    I had them years ago. I ate everything though. I bite my nails and I still found a way to do that. I would chew on pen caps as well. I never had a problem popping my brackets or anything...
  • Crystal817
    Crystal817 Posts: 2,021 Member
    I always hated that I had to cut the corn OFF the cob. :frown:
  • ESVABelle
    ESVABelle Posts: 1,264 Member
    I broke my braces eating carrot sticks. I've popped a wire out eating a Snickers. Eating the long pretzel rods. But I ate caramel. You can eat whatever, you just have to be careful how you chew or bite some things. I had braces for 2 years. Now I have a permanent retainer cemented along my bottom row. Hooray?
  • I had to have mine an extra 6 months because I kept breaking my bottom brackets, I also never wore my bands. You should just stay away from anything chewy (taffy, gum, etc.) and I had an issue with starbursts and jolly ranchers. Couldn't bite into fruits or eat nuts either.
  • heather7marie
    heather7marie Posts: 506 Member
    I broke my braces eating carrot sticks. I've popped a wire out eating a Snickers. Eating the long pretzel rods. But I ate caramel. You can eat whatever, you just have to be careful how you chew or bite some things. I had braces for 2 years. Now I have a permanent retainer cemented along my bottom row. Hooray?
    The fun, permanent retainer. Gotta love it! Bleh! I hate when stuff gets stuck under it!
  • I had them years ago. I ate everything though.

    Same here. Had them in high school and remember scoffing at that list and rebelliously eating whatever I wanted. I never popped a bracket off or broke a wire but maybe I was just lucky.

    Now flash forward to now..my 10 year old daughter has braces and she broke her wire at school biting into an apple when she wasn't supposed to.
  • elly0001
    elly0001 Posts: 191
    is toast ok if u eat it carefully and stuff??
  • TDGee
    TDGee Posts: 2,209 Member
    I had braces on my legs. I had no problem eating stuff though...
  • lsd007
    lsd007 Posts: 435
    I had braces on my legs. I had no problem eating stuff though...

    Like Forrest Gump? How cool.
  • heather7marie
    heather7marie Posts: 506 Member
    is toast ok if u eat it carefully and stuff??

    I don't see why toast would matter.
  • Misiaxcore
    Misiaxcore Posts: 659 Member
    I'm a gum addict and always chewed it with my braces. I had to eat other foods with a fork though, especially out in public because if I bit into it, chunks got stuck in my front teeth and it was a pain to get it out, never mind my friends looking at me funny when I tried getting food out of them xD. And yeah stay away from carameley food. When I ate it and it got stuck it would drive my OCD insane.
  • Yeah toast actually messes up my wife's braces, she got those white colored ones that are hard to see. She got them in her 30's, they should be coming off next year. Gum, caramel, anything chewy and sticky, pizza crust, toast, crunchy cereal, granola, all that stuff will mess up the wires and the brackets. She has popped a couple of brackets and busted one or two wires while learning these things.

    Luckily 30 year olds have to pay for their own stuff so she's very quick to learn 8).

    She also doesn't wear her bands enough because they're uncomfortable so she had to keep the braces on for 6 extra months.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    The only time they really affected what I ate was right after they were tightened and my mouth hurt too much to chew. I remember once taking an hour to eat an Auntie Anne's soft pretzel because I had to chew with my tongue.
  • colbiegirl
    colbiegirl Posts: 138
    Follow that list! It'll be worth it in the long run when you don't break your brackets and can get your braces off on time or even sooner! I just got my bottom ones off in July after having them for 24 months and my top ones at 22 months without breaking any brackets! You can still eat certain things, just be really careful. Cut corn off the cob, limit your sugary soda, etc.
  • k4evans1
    k4evans1 Posts: 145 Member
    I ate everything I wanted an never broke a thing!
  • elly0001
    elly0001 Posts: 191
    sounds like ill keep being careful then -dont want to have them longer than i have to!
  • tera7363
    tera7363 Posts: 17 Member
    my daughter is 11 & has braces now. She has had such a rough time w/brackets & wires breaking. She doesn't bite into apples or anything hard & stays away from caramel, popcorn, hard candies, etc. She wasn't wearing her rubber bands all the time & they said it's all up to her how long she has braces...so wear the bands even if they aren't comfortable!
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