Welcome << Braces & You << Do's & Don'ts Food Advice for
Orthodontic Patients While wearing braces, you must be very
mindful of what you are eating, and how you are eating it. You
should not eat chewy, or extremely hard or crunchy foods, as
they can be very problematic for a patient wearing braces.
Patients should also never put things in their mouths such as
pens, pen caps, pencils, or even their own fingers! The good
rule to live by is "Nothing but foods or toothbrushes in your
mouth!" Special care should be taken when eating things like
meat on bones-cut the meat off of the bones and eat small
pieces. Cut corn off of the cob and use a fork to eat it-DON'T
bite into the cob! Cut apples, or raw, crunchy vegetables into
small pieces-don't bite on them with your front teeth! This can
very easily loosen a brace or make it fall off completely. DO
NOT chew ice, chewing gum (even if it's sugarless), gummy bears,
fruit roll-ups, caramel, popcorn, granola bars or hard candy.
Carbonated beverages should really be avo