{"id":5247,"date":"2020-10-27T08:35:23","date_gmt":"2020-10-27T15:35:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carolinacompletedental.com\/?p=5247"},"modified":"2025-06-23T15:05:48","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T15:05:48","slug":"brace-yourself-its-time-for-a-new-menu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.carolinacompletedental.com\/blog\/brace-yourself-its-time-for-a-new-menu\/","title":{"rendered":"Brace Yourself: It\u2019s Time for a New Menu"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

According to the <\/span>American Association of Orthodontics<\/span><\/a>, over four million people in the United States are <\/span>undergoing orthodontic treatment<\/span><\/a> at any given time, and about 25% of those people are adults. These statistics include different types of orthodontic treatments<\/a>, such as clear aligner systems that have become increasingly popular in recent years. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Clear aligners can be removed to eat, drink, and clean teeth, so diets are not as limited for patients that use them, but Dr. Barganier, Dr. Zuffi, and Dr. Bal advises wearers of more traditional braces (constructed with brackets and wires) to modify their diets for the duration of treatment to avoid damaging their hardware and their teeth!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beverages to Avoid with Braces<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The list of beverages to avoid with braces is shorter than the list of restricted foods, so let\u2019s get beverages out of the way first! There are two key categories for restricted beverages: <\/span>fizzy <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>acidic<\/span><\/i>. Avoid sodas and other carbonated beverages, natural fruit juices, and sports drinks\u2014all can be very acidic and high in sugar, which encourages enamel erosion and tooth decay\u2014this is true for all teeth, but especially ones with braces! <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fizzy drinks can also stain the brackets of your braces. If you do indulge in this type of drink now and then, sip with a straw to lessen these effects. If you like ice in your drinks, that\u2019s fine, but <\/span>do not<\/b> chew it. <\/b>Chewing ice is one of the easiest (and most common) ways to damage braces!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foods to Avoid with Braces<\/span><\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When wearing braces, limit <\/span>chewy, crunchy,<\/span><\/i> sticky, hard,<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>sugary<\/span><\/i> foods whenever possible, and try to avoid biting into harder foods with your front teeth. Steaming vegetables will soften them considerably without stripping them of flavor, and if you like apples, they are soft and tasty when baked with a little cinnamon. Meat, burgers, ribs, and sub sandwiches are good examples of foods that should be cut into smaller pieces. When in doubt, slow down and try smaller bites, but be especially wary of the following:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n