Quick answer
Avoid anything hard (nuts, ice, hard candy, popcorn kernels, crusty bread ends), anything sticky (caramel, toffee, gum, gummy candy) and anything you bite into with your front teeth (whole apples, carrots, corn on the cob, ribs). Almost everything else is fine when cut into pieces and chewed with the back teeth. For the first three or four days after bonding or an adjustment, stick to soft foods. Aligner wearers have no food rules but must remove the trays to eat.
The three groups
| Group | Examples | Why | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avoid for the whole treatment | Popcorn, nuts, hard candy, ice, chewing gum, caramel, toffee, gummy and jelly candy, hard pretzels, crusty baguette ends, jerky, hard taco shells, pizza crust edges | Hard foods snap wires and shear brackets off; sticky foods pull brackets and bend wires | Skip them. Popcorn is the single most common cause of an emergency visit; the hulls also lodge under the gum. |
| Fine when cut up | Apples, pears, carrots, celery, corn on the cob, ribs and chicken wings, burgers, sandwiches, bagels, steak | Biting into them with the front teeth loads the brackets; chewing pieces with the back teeth does not | Slice fruit and vegetables, cut corn off the cob, cut meat off the bone, cut sandwiches and burgers into quarters. |
| Fine as they are | Pasta, rice, soft breads, eggs, fish, soft-cooked vegetables, bananas, berries, yogurt, cheese, soup, smoothies, pancakes, soft tortillas, tofu, well-cooked meats | No load on the brackets | Eat normally; rinse or brush afterwards. |
The first three or four days
After bonding, and to a lesser degree after each adjustment, teeth are tender enough that chewing anything firm is unpleasant. Soft food for three or four days is not a rule so much as what you will want anyway. Cold foods soothe.
- Breakfast: oatmeal, scrambled eggs, yogurt with soft fruit, smoothies, pancakes.
- Lunch: soup, mac and cheese, soft sandwiches with crusts off, mashed potato, rice bowls with soft toppings.
- Dinner: pasta, fish, shepherd's pie, dal, congee, soft tacos, slow-cooked meat that falls apart.
- Snacks: applesauce, pudding, cheese, bananas, ice cream, soft cheese and crackers left to soften.
- Drink: water, milk, smoothies. Skip fizzy drinks; the acid softens enamel around brackets.
School lunches and eating out
- Lunchbox: cut fruit rather than whole, soft granola bars rather than crunchy, cheese sticks, pasta salad, wraps cut in half. Add a travel toothbrush or at least a water bottle to rinse with.
- Restaurants: ask for a knife with anything you would normally bite into. Pizza is fine with the crust edge left; sushi is fine; burgers get quartered; corn chips are borderline and thin ones are safer than thick.
- Parties and holidays: the sticky-candy rule is the one most often broken. One caramel can mean a bracket off and a repair visit; a small plan (bring your own treats, or chocolate that melts rather than sticks) avoids the argument.
Sugar and acid: the other food rule
Braces do not cause decay, but they make plaque harder to clear. Frequent sugary or acidic food and drink (juice, sports drinks, pop, sweets grazed through the day) around brackets leaves permanent white marks and, eventually, cavities. Keep sweets to mealtimes, drink water in between, and brush after eating where you can. Brushing and flossing with braces covers the technique.
Why this matters clinically
A bracket that comes off stops moving its tooth until it is rebonded, and a bent wire can move teeth the wrong way. Each breakage typically adds a visit and a few weeks. The food rules are not about the braces surviving; they are about the treatment finishing on time.
Aligners are different
Clear aligners come out to eat, so there are no food rules. The rules that replace them: nothing but water with trays in, trays out for a maximum of about four hours a day in total, and brush (or at least rinse well) before they go back in. The Invisalign hub has the routine.
Questions people ask
Can I eat pizza with braces?
Yes. Eat the soft part and leave the hard crust edge, or cut it up.
Can I chew gum with braces?
No. Gum sticks to brackets and bends wires.
What about chips and crackers?
Thin, soft-crunch chips are usually fine in small bites with the back teeth; thick kettle chips, hard pretzels and tortilla chips that shatter are risky.
I bit something hard and a bracket feels loose. What now?
Leave it, cover any sharp part with wax, and call the clinic for a repair this week. Loose bracket or poking wire.
References
- Benson PE, Parkin N, Dyer F, Millett DT, Germain P. Fluorides for preventing early tooth decay (demineralised lesions) during fixed brace treatment. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2019;(11):CD003809. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD003809.pub4
- American Association of Orthodontists. Handling orthodontic emergencies at home. Consumer guidance. https://aaoinfo.org/
- Proffit WR, Fields HW, Larson BE, Sarver DM. Contemporary Orthodontics, 6th edition. Elsevier, 2019.
Where Surrey families get this treatment
Guildford Orthodontic Centre
A specialist orthodontic practice in Guildford where Dr. Aly Kanani and Dr. Aida Mesbahi, both Certified Specialists in Orthodontics, provide braces, Invisalign and growth-appliance treatment for children, teens and adults.
The complimentary first visit includes an examination, photographs and a digital scan, with radiographs when indicated, and ends with a written plan and quote. Braces adjustments, aligner checks, emergency visits and retainer follow-up all happen at the same Guildford office.
- Address
- Suite 200 – 10203 152A Street, Surrey, BC V3R 4H6 (Guildford)
- Hours
- Monday to Saturday, 8 am to 5 pm
- Website
- guildfordorthodontics.com
Disclosure: SurreyBraces.com is a treatment guide published by the myORTHODONTIST network, which operates Guildford Orthodontic Centre. The guidance above applies whoever provides your care. Full disclosure.
About this guide
- Published by
- The myORTHODONTIST network
- Written by
- SurreyBraces.com editorial team
- Clinical reviewer
- Dr. Aida Mesbahi, Certified Specialist in Orthodontics (profile). Clinically reviewed on 21 September 2026.
- Originally published
- 9 May 2021
- Revised
- 20 September 2026. Short avoid/eat lists expanded into a food-rule table, first-week menu and lunchbox guidance; original topic and address retained.