Foods That Can Harm Your Braces

McClellan Orthodontics

Teeth move best in a healthy environment and in individuals who maintain excellent overall health.

Certain dietary habits are known to cause breakage of orthodontic appliances, as well as increase the risk of dental disease. Dr. McClellan’s aim is to achieve treatment goals with as few disturbances as possible due to appliance breakage, and to minimize the side effects of poor diet choices.

Braces and other orthodontic appliances are attached to your teeth with a special orthodontic glue or cement that will withstand the normal forces of eating. However, brackets can be dislodged, and wires can be bent or broken after eating certain foods.

For most situations, common sense will tell you the specific foods to avoid.

To protect your orthodontic appliances, be sure to avoid:

• Hard and Crunchy Foods – These foods can break or damage wires and brackets, loosen cement under the bands or break the little brackets and tubes that are attached.

• Sticky and Chewy Foods – Sticky foods can get caught between brackets and wires, cling to bands, and pull appliances off. These foods can weaken the bond strength of the glue or cement for any appliance glued in your mouth.

• Sugary Foods – Foods and drinks that may cause cavities should be restricted while you are wearing braces or other orthodontic appliances. Whether you wear an orthodontic appliance or not, sugary foods can cause tooth decay and other related problems and should be avoided whenever possible. If you do eat them, brush your teeth immediately. If it is not convenient to brush, then rinse your mouth with clear water after eating sweet foods.

When taking care of braces or other orthodontic appliances, softer foods are recommended. Additionally, do not chew on non-food items such as pens, pencils, ice, or your fingernails.

It is beneficial to check your braces or other orthodontic appliances regularly to make sure that nothing is bent, broken, or loose. In the event of a loose or broken wire or bracket please call our office immediately to arrange an appointment for repair.

Remember, loose brackets or bands and bent or broken wires create longer treatment times and added fees. So please choose your foods wisely.

If you have any questions about dietary restrictions or healthy food choices, give our Kenilworth, IL orthodontic office a call!

 

5 Steps to the Perfect Selfie

McClellan Orthodontics

Selfies have been popular for years now. And taking selfies is a fantastic way to show off your personality and confidence…not to mention your McClellan Orthodontics smile.

Taking a selfie is an art form. A great selfie is more than just a quick camera click, it takes a level of skill to capture and edit the perfect picture. After some practice using our tried-and-true techniques below the team at McClellan Orthodontics knows you will be a selfie expert in no time!

5 Tips that will Help you to Take Flawless Selfies

1. Have Expression. You can never go wrong with smiling…but do not fake it. Think about something that really does make you smile. Play around with different smiles and expressions and have fun! Relax your mouth and breathe out. This will stop your smile from looking tense in your picture. 

 

2. Capture Your Best Angle. We all have a particular side or angle that we feel looks much better in selfies. If you haven’t yet found yours, try moving the phone around your face and snapping a ton of photos. Instead of taking pictures head-on, turn your head a little to the right or left, or hold your camera a little higher…try different angles to show off your best features. If possible, try and extend your head away from your neck. When you do this, you will then be able to create the look of a longer neck and smoother jawline. You can push your shoulders down if you want as this will help you to look more relaxed.

3. Focus on Lighting. Lighting is everything. They say that taking selfies using natural light is great. But the truth is that sometimes the rays can be too harsh on the face, so avoid snapping a shot during midday. You can always find a light source inside, just make sure that it is not located behind you and that there are no shadows on your face. When you are in the perfect selfie pose, slowly spin around until you can find the best lighting angle and then snap away.

4. Don't Use a Mirror. Just stretch your arm out, point the camera toward your face and click. Don’t hold your phone in front of you. Instead, hold it out to the side…this will help you to get the best angle.

5. Show Off Something New. If you decide to take a selfie to show off something new…like your braces, make sure that you frame the photo in a way that highlights the new accessory that has you so excited.

Now you are ready! Upload those selfies to all your feeds. Are you a patient of McClellan Orthodontics? Tag us in your selfies, we would love to see your smiling face!