There are many things that can cause damage to your braces and appliances, not just food!  Below is a list of the most common offenders, however we cannot put everything on the list. A good rule of thumb is- If it takes forever to clean out of your braces, then it probably is not a good idea to eat it!  Things that are sticky, chewy or really hard and crunchy, should be avoided.  Usually, you can find substitutions for your favorite foods if they are on the list.  For example, instead of eating popcorn, you can try puffcorn.  Puffcorn has no kernals, and is perfectly safe to eat.

     Another important thing to avoid during treatment is sugary drinks, especially pop!  The sugar and the carbonation in the pop feeds any plaque that may be left on the teeth, causing stains.  Mountain Dew is the one of the worst pops on the market when it comes to harming the teeth.  Whenever a patient develops stains, they almost always say they are a big pop drinker!  If you cannot give it up during treatment, then drink it with a straw to keep the pop off of your teeth.

Popcorn	Gum	Hard Candy
Hard Tacos	Taffy	Tootsie Rolls
Doritos	Gummy Bears/Worms	Ice
Peanuts/Nuts	Starbursts	Fingernails
Raw veggies	Skittles	Pencils
Apple -(cut it up)	Suckers	Pens
Bagels	Jolly Ranchers	Sugary Drinks
Hard Pizza Crust	Fruit Roll-Ups	Soda Pop
Granola	Carmel	Did we say Gum?
Slim Jims	Beef Jerky	Gum