Food for people with dental braces?

[The Late Night Gourmet]

My son just got braces last week.

When my son was little, he used to fight us when we were trying to brush his teeth. Even though baby toothpaste tastes like candy, he'd spit it out. This was paired with his grandparents' desire to spoil him by giving him candy whenever they had a chance. Baby teeth are supposed to fall out on their own. But, with him fighting the process the whole way, he developed painful cavities. By the time he was 5, he'd had 3 dental surgeries to extract a total of 8 baby teeth. Not surprisingly, his adult teeth didn't come in as straight as they should have done.

He's been a surprisingly good sport about the whole thing. And, he understands (and accepts) what he can't have (like hard candy and - the real loss - popcorn). But, I still want him to be happy. If anyone has had to adjust their cooking for people with braces (including yourself), please share any ideas you might have.

I did start a batch of blackberry gelato last night, so I'm off to a good start, but I'm open to ideas.

 

[Morning Glory]

What is the main problem with eating in dental braces? I don't have any experience... why not popcorn?

 

[The Late Night Gourmet]

What is the main problem with eating in dental braces? I don't have any experience... why not popcorn?

Things like popcorn and chocolate can get stuck in the dental work and are hard to clean out. Even worse, if you try to eat things like caramel, it can pull the dental work out of alignment. This is a big adjustment for my son!

 

[Morning Glory]

Things like popcorn and chocolate can get stuck in the dental work and are hard to clean out. Even worse, if you try to eat things like caramel, it can pull the dental work out of alignment. This is a big adjustment for my son!

OK - I see. Really it would be best for him to somehow come off all that sugar addiction I suppose! But anyway - ice-cream sounds like a good idea in terms of sweet things. Are you just asking for sweet ideas?

 

[Masticator]

Had my jaw wired together when I was younger..long story..
Ate thru a straw..got used to putting anything & everything through a blender. (except beer) ;-)
Chicken soup always had chicken strands stuck in the "braces"..ate pretty much vegetarian :-(
Mac & Cheese was always good!..mushroom soup..banana..apple..most fruits & veggies....healthy eating actually..unlike now
If you do any fruit/berry/ smoothie stuff, just make sure there's no tiny seeds (or strands)...they get stuck everywhere
A (tank style) water-pik was a lifesaver!..Your kid might have fun with one also!..expect a deluge of water sprayed all over the bathroom floor/walls/ceiling initially though!

 

[The Late Night Gourmet]

@Masticator: great suggestions! Mac & Cheese is always a winner.

I have an electric toothbrush for him, but I will definitely get him a water-pik to help get all the hard-to-reach things.

@morning glory: I'm not necessarily thinking only sweets that he can have. He will need to cut down significantly, and he knows this, which is definitely a step in the right direction for him health-wise!

 

[swasthika]

You can have: Dairy – soft cheese, pudding, milk-based drinks, yogurts, cottage cheese, eggs. or Breads – soft tortillas, pancakes, muffins without nuts.

 

[Scott-180]

Hi Late Night,
I had braces when I was 28 so it is still fresh in my memory. All the suggestions mentioned so far are good. I can't really add to them but one thing that I did do to make life easier was to make my own miniature tooth brush which I carried everywhere with me. I bought a cheap, regular toothbrush and sawed off about 80% of the handle with a hacksaw. I left about an inch of the handle and then smoothed of the sharp edges with a file. This made it small enough to easily keep it in my pocket and take with me wherever I went. Whenever I ate anything, I would just visit the bathroom and brush away any bits of food that had got stuck.

I hope this helps and please reassure your son that he will get used to it soon and it will totally be worth it in the long run when he gets that perfect smile!

 

[buckytom]

Lol, love the guilt trip about spitting out toothpaste, and the grands' candy.

Have you tried using a water pik?

 

[oddduck]

My sister had braces...she used a water pik...i don't remember her being picky about eating stuff because of the braces except right after she got and a few days after each tightening.

 

[swasthika]

@buckytom My Mom using water pik. she gave feedback to me it's removing plaque, preventing cavities & clearing out debris.

 

[Cherry Kirschenbaum]

I wore braces for a year and a half and would eat anything. Admittedly I've never been a fan of hard candy or caramel, but would eat nuts or chew gum and that never affected the braces. Only saying that to give you a piece of mind that the dental work is not that easy to move around, I would have definitely listened to my dentist now, but I was a stubborn teenager back when I had them.

I think this would be a good opportunity for your son to start eating a bit healthier, when you haven't had a certain food for a long time, it definitely makes it easier to avoid in the future as well.

Re: hygiene, I used these tiny toothbrushes pictured below to clean in between the gaps where food always gets stuck. Since they bend, they are easy to use on the back teeth as well, and they come in bigger sizes (I recommend a bigger size to clean the braces, I use the one below to floss so understandably they are the smallest size possible). Definitely worth spending the time on this, especially since he has sensitive teeth.