Can You Eat Popcorn With Braces?

Movies, baseball games, county fairs — it’s hard to imagine going to any of those events without eating at least some popcorn. However, having braces means a lot of popular foods are off the table. So, can you eat popcorn with braces?

What Happens When You Eat Popcorn With Braces?

It’s generally inadvisable to eat popcorn while you’re wearing braces because they can pose several oral health risks. The primary concern is the tendency of popcorn hulls — the thin, sharp outer shells of the kernels — to lodge between teeth and gums. You may not realize that they’re still there, and removing them can be difficult.

Ultimately, this can lead to gum irritation and inflammation. If you don’t take care of them quickly, those conditions can become more serious issues, such as gum abscesses, which are painful infections that often need professional dental care.

Furthermore, the accumulation of food particles, like popcorn hulls, around braces creates the type of environment bacteria need to grow. The resulting plaque buildup increases the risk of tooth decay and cavities. Good oral hygiene is already more difficult when you’re wearing braces, and hard-to-clean foods like popcorn just make the problem worse.

Ways Popcorn Can Damage Braces

Besides leading to oral hygiene issues, eating popcorn with braces could affect your orthodontic treatment plan by causing mechanical damage, such as:

• Bent Archwires: Biting down on popcorn kernels, especially unpopped or partially popped ones, can bend or damage the archwires, which connect the brackets on your teeth. This can make braces less effective.
• Loose Brackets: Chewing on hard popcorn kernels can cause brackets to loosen or even detach from the tooth surface. This also changes the force applied to your teeth.
• Dislodged Ligatures: Ligatures are small rubber bands or wires that hold the archwire in place within the brackets, helping guide your teeth into new positions. Tough foods like popcorn can cause ligatures to stretch or break.

When you damage any part of your braces, you’ll need additional appointments to fix them, which extends your treatment timeline and costs more money. It’s smart to avoid this by not eating popcorn with braces.

What Can You Eat With Braces Instead of Popcorn?

You’re at the movies, and popcorn is off the list, so what do you snack on instead? Try some of these delicious alternatives:

• Soft pretzels with cheese or mustard (torn into pieces)
• Cheese or veggie pizza with a soft crust
• Chewy breadsticks with marinara or cheese
• Soft crackers or granola bars without hard nuts or seeds
• Caramel- and nut-free melty chocolate candies
• Cherry, blue raspberry, or cola slushies

There is such a thing as “hull-less” popcorn; however, no popcorn is entirely free of potentially damaging hulls, and it’s wise to avoid it altogether.

Don’t Eat Popcorn With Braces To Keep Them in Great Shape

Eating popcorn with braces is not a great idea if you want to get them off on schedule. Pick up some other savory snacks instead, like pita bread with hummus, and contact us at Peterson Family Orthodontics if you have any more questions about which foods you should avoid with braces.