Toasted bread might sound like the blandest breakfast in the world to some. But the truly cultured and sophisticated among us know better. Toasted bread with the perfect amount of butter is the base layer of the British food pyramid. But after your latest ortho appointment, some of you are probably asking – can you eat toast with braces?
Can You Eat Toast With Braces?
Yes, you can eat toast with braces but you need to know how to do it safely. Toast may seem pretty innocuous as a simple food that shouldn’t cause problems with your new braces. However, with braces, it’s not quite as simple to eat as it once may have been.
A big thing to avoid with braces is biting with your front teeth. This is a common way for braces brackets to get pushed off as well as for bending wires. Hard food like big chunks of crusty bread, as well as very chewy food, are also things to avoid.
Toast can be all three of these at the same time. That doesn’t mean you have to stop eating toast with braces but you can make some adjustments to stay safe and avoid more dentist appointments that result in having your braces on longer.
How To Eat Toast With Braces
Eating Toast With Braces Tip #1
Cut your toast up before eating it, then eat with your back teeth. Normally we eat the toast by tearing off a chunk with our teeth and chewing. This isn’t going to be healthy with expensive braces on so we need a way to avoid using the front teeth for cutting and middle teeth for chewing.
You should also try to eat slower and avoid big mouthfuls of hard, chewy bread. This applies to many foods while eating braces but tougher food like toast bread even more so.
The easiest way of saving time with this method is to put all of your toasted slices together and cut them into a grid shape of small squares with a big kitchen knife instead of a knife and fork. It adds a bit of time to your normal snack but not so much you need to abandon it.
Eating Toast With Braces Tip #2
Use fresh, soft bread. As much as we like the local made-in-house specialist bakery stuff, it’s normally quite hard compared to the cheap long-life loaves. Freshly made bread also tends to go stale and hard sooner.
You can buy soft crust bread for those that are very much anti-crust. You can still eat toast crusts with braces but they are tougher than the soft middle.
Eating Toast With Braces Tip #3
Toast for a shorter time or on a lower setting for less hard biting and chewing. This is safer for keeping your braces in good condition. Turn the dial on your toaster down and get used to a rare toast if you are used to having it well done.
Eating Toast With Braces Tip #4
Use a little more butter or let it sit longer to soften. Adding butter, margarine, or healthier plant-based spreads will soften the toast up. Leave it a little longer than normal to help or use a teensy bit more spread than usual – though always as part of a healthy, balanced diet.
Eating Toast With Braces Tip #5
Try to avoid seeded and nutty bread. I personally love seeded bread with pumpkin, linseed, sunflower, poppy, and sliced nuts all baked into a wholemeal loaf. However, the extra chewiness of the whole meal, the hard crunch of the nuts, and the tiny seeds are all really hard on braces.
You can probably still get away with eating the healthier version of bread but you’ll soon realize how much extra brushing and cleaning you’ll need to do after. Seeds get trapped in between teeth and in the nooks and crannies of braces very easily and can be a pain to remove.
Eating Toast With Braces Tip #6
As always you should aim to rinse your mouth with water immediately after eating to clear debris, then brush and floss 30 to 60 minutes later. This goes for all food eaten while you have braces. It stops bits getting trapped next to your teeth and causing decay and yellowing at the time you need it the least.
Can You Eat Toasted Bread With Braces?
In the UK we generally call a standard square-sliced loaf toast, but there are different types of toasted bread. Eating toasted bread-like ciabatta slices, or other crustier and more traditional slices can be done with braces.
However, you should make your own decision on whether certain breads are too tough or too crusty to eat safely. In general, if you are able to cut it up and eat the chunks at the back of your teeth you should be OK. Try to also eat small bites and don’t rush – leading to a big ball of hard, chewy bread.
Toast Recipes For Braces
Toast is a cheap and easy meal that many people love for its simplicity. In fact, it can be a great to-go meal when you have braces. Our favorites in no particular order are: –
- Beans On Toast – The classic British snack. Beans in a tomato sauce from a can over toast – Heinz beans preferred. Try it! Really cheap and easy to make and the beans make the toast soft and easy to eat without much chewing
- Smashed Avocado On Toast – The “millenial breakfast” is an amazing braces recipe that’s easy to make and soft to eat. Protein, carbs, and healthy fats all in one. We like a little lemon, a dash of pepper, smoked paprika, and hot sauce on ours.
- Scrambled Eggs On Toast – Another classic! Try cooking your scrambled eggs French-style over a low heath, scrambling constantly, and serve them while still a little runny. A bit of French or Dijon mustard goes well with this dish.
- Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese on Toast – Basically a bagel without the toughness. An excellent tasting and easy to eat meal. Don’t tell anyone from New York you ate it like this though.
Can You Eat French Toast With Braces?
Yes, you can eat French Toast with braces! It’s actually a great recipe for a tasty breakfast that you can eat safely. However, you should avoid using sweet toppings and have the toast more European-style as a savory food. You can also have fruits instead of sugar as a healthier alternative.
Read more – What Fruits Can You Eat With Braces?
– Can You Eat Eggs With Braces?
You can use normal bread or brioche bread. You can pan fry or grill, and you shouldn’t use sugar, powdered sugar, syrup, or honey as toppings. French toast is tasty enough on its own. Just make sure to cut it up into small chunks and eat at the back of your mouth!
Savory French Toast Recipe For Braces
My family’s french toast recipe is eggs whipped with a little milk, a tiny bit of salt, pepper, and a touch of something umami. We use Worcestershire sauce but you can use a tiny bit of soy sauce. Toast the bread before and then dip both sides for a few seconds, then pan fry with olive oil or butter.
Serve with ketchup (sweet tomato sauce) on the side and a good cup of coffee. We used to drink black coffee religiously but now cold coffee through a straw works better with braces.
Can You Eat French Toast Sticks With Braces?
Yes, the same goes for French Toast sticks. You can eat them with braces but either cut them up with a knife and fork or tear them using the back teeth instead of the front. It’s a little awkward but you’ll get used to it.
Can You Eat Peanut Butter Toast With Braces?
No, you should avoid eating peanut butter or peanut butter toast with braces. This is purely because peanut butter is a real pain to eat with braces and can be dangerous. Peanut butter is one of my favorite healthy snacks, but the stickiness can cause broken brackets – It’s one of the top foods to avoid eating while wearing braces.
Can You Eat Nutella Toast With Braces?
You can eat Nutella on toast with braces but you probably shouldn’t. While Nutella markets itself as being healthy because it’s made with nuts, it’s actually mainly sugar. You should avoid eating sugary foods while wearing braces whenever possible.
We are perfect though. The occasional sweet treat like Nutella toast will be OK as long as your rinse with water after and brush thoroughly 30-60 minutes later.
Can You Eat Cinnamon Toast With Braces?
Much like Nutella toast, you can eat cinnamon toast with braces but you probably shouldn’t. Cinnamon toast is really sugary and sweet. Butter and sugar together are pretty overkill anyway but with braces, it can cause extra issues.
Once in a while, you’ll be fine. If this is a regular food you ate before getting braces you should try to find a healthier alternative like the savory French toast recipe we recommend above. Also, avoid Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal with braces.
