
There’s an advantage and disadvantage of wearing braces and just like any other treatment processes, it also come with their own list of do’s and don’ts. As expected, the regulations are necessary to ensure you don’t hurt yourself by breaking your brackets or shifting your wires. Therefore, to stay out of harm’s way, here are 5 things to avoid while wearing braces.
1. Don’t Forget to Floss
Flossing is always essential for your teeth’s hygiene, more so when you have braces. Let’s face it, the last thing you want after perfectly aligning your teeth is gum disease, dental cavities or tooth decay. Therefore, as much as it might be quite challenging to floss with your braces on, it is extremely necessary since food particles easily get trapped by the brackets and wires, therefore, creating plague that may eventually damage your enamel. Good thing is, there are threaders and flossers specially designed for braces which you can opt for.
2. Don’t Chew on Ice
Chewing on ice is always a terrible idea even when you don’t have braces. However, things can get super bad when you chew on ice with braces. Put in mind that, it is not even advisable to bite on hard surfaces or eat hard foods such as nuts, hard pretzels and ice with braces. Biting on ice can cause the brackets to break or wires to bend, which is not only costly to fix but also not a pretty experience.
3. Avoid Sticky or Chewy Foods 
The last thing you want is to damage your braces, and that is exactly what sticky or chewy foods like gum and taffy will do; if the stickiness does not pull loose your wires and brackets, the continuous chewing will place considerable pressure on the brackets, wires, and bands causing them to break in the process. Again, doesn’t sound like something you’ll want happening.
4. Avoid sugar sweetened beverages
This encompasses your favorite soda, energy drinks, and sports drinks. These drinks not only contain lots of sugar (which is naturally bad for your teeth) but also contain acid that can dissolve the glue that holds your braces in place, making it easier for them to loosen up.
5. Don’t pick or Play with Your Braces
Braces might get uncomfortable at times, intriguing you to pick at the brackets or play with the wires when you feel bored. However, you must refrain from doing both for obvious reasons; you might break a wire or loosen the brackets, which will, of course, cost you time and money. Otherwise you can always call your orthodontist if you feel something is wrong or if you want to consult more.