It’s almost here — Halloween: the magical night when our neighbors give away free candy. Free candy, people! For people with braces, the only thing that can put a damper on this amazing tradition is eating the wrong candy. Yes, we said it: "the wrong candy."
"How can candy be wrong?" you might ask, "Isn't that like saying puppies and sunshine are wrong?" Leaving the big life questions like that aside, let's just say that there are some candies — sweet, wonderful, and oh-so-right candies — that are less than optimal for your braces. Just remember the old saying, "A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips a trip to Dr. Appel to reattach brackets!"
There are some sweets you should avoid because they can actually adversely affect your dental or orthodontic work as well as your teeth. We all know the standard dental warning about sweets: Sugar isn’t good for your teeth, and things like hard candies can damage them as well. Really sticky stuff can wreak havoc on things like fillings. These warnings go doubly-so for orthodontic hardware.
Here is a List of Halloween Candy to Avoid When You Have Braces:
- Hard candies (Werthers, Jolly Ranchers, and the like)
- Sticky, chewy candies (Tootsie Rolls, Laffy Taffy, etc.)
- Nut heavy confections (Turtles, Almond Joy, peanut M&Ms)
- Acidic sweets (Skittles, Starburst, sour Gummy Worms)
If all seems bleak, fear not, for some of the crown jewels of the candy world are still available to for you to eat.
Some folks are going to try and console you with lies like, "Well, you can have ice cream, sweetie." Or smoothies. Or cookies. These might be sweet, but come on. This is Halloween, for crying out loud! How would you even carry ice cream around in your loot bag?
Moving from best to worst, here’s the Halloween candy you CAN have:
- Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
- Kit Kats
- Plain chocolate like Hershey's bars and kisses and Ritter Sport
- Peppermint Patties
- Whoppers (though we do advise letting them melt in your mouth)
- Three Musketeers
Just remember, some of these candy avoidances are temporary. There will be more Halloweens. Making sure your bite accommodates these treats and your smile looks great once you've taken a bite depends upon us working together. Your task is to spend this Halloween eating all the Reese’s Cups you can get your hands on and leaving the Snickers until next year.
As always, though, if you wind up having a candy-induced accident with your orthodontic hardware, we're a no-judgment zone. Just give us a call and come in so we can get you back on track.