Thanksgiving is the biggest meal of the year in many homes, and for families with a child in braces, it can bring a few extra questions, mainly: What foods are safe for my child to eat?
Good news: most Thanksgiving foods are perfectly fine with braces. Most dishes just need a little patience and a reminder to cut them into small pieces.
If you’ve read our guide on what to eat with braces, then you already know the general rules. Hard and sticky foods can break or pull on brackets, and biting into whole pieces of food, like an apple or a drumstick, puts pressure on the front teeth. In this post, I’ll walk you through Thanksgiving with braces one course at a time, from the appetizers to the leftovers. I’ll also cover what to do if a bracket comes loose while our offices are closed, along with a few notes for families in clear aligners.
Braces-Friendly Thanksgiving Appetizers
The appetizer table holds most of the foods to watch for, and they’re easy to grab without thinking.
Mixed nuts and candied pecans are the main ones to skip. Nuts are hard enough to knock a bracket off the tooth, and candied nuts add a sticky coating on top of that. The same goes for popcorn and hard pretzels if the football game is on.
A veggie tray works with some prep. Raw carrots and celery can go on the plate if you cut them into thin sticks and chew them with your back teeth. Cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices need no changes, and neither does the dip.
The cheese board takes a little more sorting. Soft cheeses and thin crackers that break apart easily are good choices. Crusty baguette slices and thick tortilla chips are harder on braces, so I’d point your child toward soft bread or pita for the dip instead. Deviled eggs and warm spinach dip are easy picks too.
Eating Turkey with Braces
Turkey is safe with braces. The only change is how your child eats it.
Cut the meat into small pieces before your child starts eating, and have them chew with the back teeth. Dark meat tends to be more tender than breast meat, and a little gravy helps if the turkey comes out dry. If your child loves the drumstick, then pull the meat off the bone with a fork first. Biting meat off a bone puts sideways pressure on the front brackets, and that can loosen one.
Ham works the same way. Slice it thin and cut it small, and it belongs on a braces-friendly plate.
Braces-Friendly Thanksgiving Side Dishes
Most Thanksgiving sides are soft by nature, which makes this the easiest part of the meal. Mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and mac and cheese can all go on the plate as-is.
A few sides need a closer look:
- Stuffing: The soft middle is fine. The crispy edges and corners from the pan are crunchier, so scoop from the center.
- Green bean casserole: The green beans are soft, but the fried onions on top can get crunchy. A spoonful from underneath the topping is the safer pick.
- Sweet potato casserole: The sweet potatoes themselves are soft. A toasted marshmallow topping gets sticky as it cools, and a pecan crumble brings back the nut problem. Take the potatoes and keep the topping light.
- Corn: Corn served off the cob needs no changes. For corn on the cob, cut the kernels off with a knife first.
- Rolls: Soft dinner rolls are a good choice. Tear crusty bread into small pieces instead of biting into it.
Braces-Friendly Thanksgiving Desserts
Pumpkin pie might be the most braces-friendly dessert of the whole year. The filling is soft, and the crust breaks apart easily. Apple pie and cheesecake are good choices too, and whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream on top is no problem.
Pecan pie is best left off the menu. Whole pecans and sticky filling make it doubly hard on brackets. Caramel apples and peanut brittle fall into the same category. If these are family traditions, save them for after treatment, when your child can enjoy them without a second thought.
Thanksgiving Leftovers with Braces
Leftovers follow the same rules as the meal. A turkey sandwich on soft bread works when it’s cut into quarters, so your child can take small bites with the back teeth. Reheated stuffing and potatoes are easy, and turkey soup is a good way to use up whatever’s left. Softer leftovers also come in handy when your child’s teeth are tender after a recent adjustment. Soreness after adjustments is one of the things I cover in what’s normal with braces.
Keeping Braces Clean on Thanksgiving Day
The bigger challenge on Thanksgiving is usually how long the day’s eating lasts. Many families start with appetizers around noon and don’t finish dessert until evening, so that food can sit on your kid’s brackets for hours.
Brushing after every round of food isn’t always practical during the holidays. A quick swish of water after each round can still help by washing away larger food particles around your brackets. Then brush your teeth thoroughly after the main meal and again before bed.
If your family is traveling for the holiday, packing a small kit can make things easier. Bring a travel toothbrush, a small tube of toothpaste, floss threaders (small loops that guide floss under the wire), and orthodontic wax.
What to Do If a Bracket Breaks on Thanksgiving
Our offices are closed on Thanksgiving Day and the day after. If a bracket comes loose or a wire starts poking during the meal, then here’s what to do until we can see your child:
- Cover any rough or sharp spot with a small piece of orthodontic wax so it doesn’t rub the cheek.
- Have your child chew on the other side until we can take a look.
- If a bracket comes all the way off, then save it in a small bag and bring it with you.
- Call the office once we reopen. If your child is uncomfortable, we’ll get them in right away. If not, the repair can often wait for the next planned visit.
If your child is on DentalMonitoring, then I’ll also see the loose bracket on the next scan. Families who are away for the holiday can bring the ScanBox along. It’s the small device that holds the phone in place for each scan, so the weekly scan can happen on schedule wherever they are. To see what happens when something comes loose between visits, read about how DentalMonitoring works with braces.
Thanksgiving with Clear Aligners
Families using clear aligners have an easier time enjoying the food itself, since they can remove their aligners to eat. They can still enjoy pecan pie and mixed nuts. The main thing to keep in mind is how long the aligners stay out.
Aligners only move teeth while they’re being worn, so every hour spent in the case counts toward that day’s wear time. On a day of grazing from noon to night, those hours add up. A few habits help:
- Eat the main meal and dessert in one sitting rather than picking at them all afternoon.
- Keep the aligner case in a pocket so the aligners don’t end up wrapped in a napkin and thrown away.
- Before putting your aligners back in, try to brush your teeth—or at least rinse them well. This helps keep food from getting trapped under the aligners and sitting against your teeth until you take them out again.
- While your aligners are in, stick to just drinking water, and enjoy everything else once you take them out.
For more on how aligners fit into a teen’s routine, our guide to clear aligners for teens covers the basics.
Thinking About Braces for Your Child?
So yes, your child can have the turkey, and the pumpkin pie too. A little prep at the table covers most of it.
If your child isn’t in treatment yet and you’ve been wondering whether it’s time, start with a free VO Smile Assessment. If you’re still researching your options, our complete guide to braces covers how treatment works from start to finish. We see families at our Creve Coeur and St. Peters offices. Happy Thanksgiving, and we look forward to seeing you.
