Halloween is a fun and exciting time of year for everybody, including those wearing braces. As always, we want your experience to be a great one. So, we’re suggesting some braces-friendly treats for Halloween.
This year, there are also safety tips to make sure Halloween is spooky and safe, including social distancing and masks. Please see the CDC website for tips.
For those with braces, avoiding hard, sticky, crunchy, and chewy foods all year is recommended. Also, some foods can stain braces like grape juice, berries, and sodas. However, there are always great, delicious alternatives.
As always, it’s a good idea to minimize sweets. However, on Halloween, you can reward yourself. Just be sure to rinse, brush and floss afterward to avoid possible tooth decay. Brushing and flossing during this season are more important than ever.
Safe Halloween Treats
To know if a food is safe, think, “Is it soft enough to chew easily? Or will it be too sticky or hard and get stuck?” If in doubt, it’s probably best to avoid it.
The American Association of Orthodontists recommends avoiding “sticky situations” and saying “boo” to hard, sticky, crunchy, chewy treats. Of course, it’s always best to limit sugary sweets and rinse, brush, and floss after consumption.
Therefore, the following treats are soft and safer to eat during Halloween:
- Kit-Kats
- Pixie Stix
- Malt Balls
- Soft cake
- Apple cider
- 3 Muskateers
- Jell-O and pudding
- Ice cream and yogurt
- Doughnuts and soft cookies
- Peeled thinly-chopped apples
- Soft cheese puffs (never popcorn)
- Milkshakes and smoothies, floats
- Peanut butter cups and Reese’s Pieces
- Soft cookies and cupcakes without nuts
- Soft peppermint patties and Junior Mints
- Smooth pure chocolate that melts in the mouth (Kisses, Hershey bars without nuts)
As you can see, many yummy options are soft enough not to damage braces. Thus, you can avoid a broken wire or bracket and an inconvenient and possibly painful emergency appointment.
Scary Treats to Avoid
Remember: Avoid foods that are:
- STICKY
- HARD
- CRUNCHY
- CHEWY
These foods get stuck in brackets, and it’s harder to clean your braces after eating them.
Halloween treats that fall into the “Scary” category include:
- Candy corns
- Tootsie Rolls
- Chewing gum
- Caramel and taffy
- Skittles and Starbursts
- Lollipops and hard candies
- Popcorn, chips, hard pretzels
- Jawbreakers (always a bad idea)
- Nuts (except soft peanut butter)
- Licorice, gummies, and jelly beans
- Apples and carrots (unless finely chopped and peeled)
Today due to the pandemic, it’s especially important to avoid foods that can damage your braces. Also, it’s essential to keep your teeth clean, brushing after every snack and meal. See more tips about caring for braces during quarantine in our recent blog.
Farrow Orthodontics wishes you a spooktacular Halloween! Be safe and have fun.
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Call us anytime at (215)247-9060 for our Mt. Airy Office.
Or, call us at (215) 569-9060 for our Center City Office.
Dr. Farrow and our team at Farrow Orthodontics are experts in orthodontic treatment. We are here to answer any questions or concerns you may have in Philadelphia, PA, Center City, PA, Logan Square, PA, and Rittenhouse Square, PA.