It’s hard to believe the holiday season is already upon us! It’s a busy and exciting time of year. But, between all the holiday shopping, cooking, and visiting relatives, it can also be a stressful time. For patients with braces, it might seem daunting to approach this holiday season of sticky treats and plentiful goodies. But, learning which foods to avoid can help you prevent damaged, broken, or bent braces.
To help you keep your orthodontic appliances safe and healthy this season, Dr. Hutta and Dr. Cook have compiled a list of foods you should avoid during the holidays:
- Candy Canes: A classic holiday treat, candy canes are too hard and sticky to eat with braces. Biting into one can easily distort your wires or break a bracket. Even if you do manage to bite into a candy cane, the small, sticky pieces of hard candy can easily get stuck in your braces, resulting in plaque buildup and stained teeth.
- Nuts: It might be the season of chestnuts roasting on an open fire, but you’re better off steering clear of nuts this holiday season. Because they’re so crunchy and hard, nuts can cause some serious damage to your orthodontic appliances. This year, skip that bowl of roasted peanuts or Grandma’s pecan pie and opt for soft cookies instead.
- Caramel: Caramel is far too sticky to eat with braces! Chewy caramel can stick to your orthodontic appliances, bending wires and causing problematic plaque buildup that can discolor your teeth.
- Popcorn: Curling up and watching holiday movies with family is a great tradition, but skip the popcorn this year. Popcorn is one of the worst foods for your braces since biting into the kernel can break a bracket. Kernels can also get wedged in your braces, causing painful swelling of the gum tissue. To resolve this issue, we might even have to temporarily remove the braces and wires to clean it out.
- Fruit cake: Having braces is a great excuse to say no to holiday fruit cake! That sticky, dried fruit can get stuck in your appliances. Plus, fruit cake is often laden with sneaky nuts that could damage braces.
Make sure to avoid these harmful snacks for a braces-friendly holiday season! If you have any questions or concerns, get in contact with us at Hutta & Cook Orthodontics today.