The holidays tend to pull your attention in every direction. There are pies to bake, trips to pack for, and family to catch up with. In the middle of it all, it can be easy to let a few habits slide. Knowing how to stay on track with your orthodontic treatment during the holidays helps you keep your progress moving forward while still enjoying the season. At Goings Orthodontics, we’re here to make that even easier with simple tips that work wherever the celebrations take you.
Stick To Your Oral Hygiene Routine During Holiday Chaos
Holidays often throw off your usual schedule, but brushing and flossing still need to happen twice a day. Between travel, family events, and late nights, it’s easy to skip a step here or there, but even small lapses can lead to bigger issues, like plaque buildup, stains, or irritated gums.
If you’re wearing metal bracesor clear braces, food can easily get caught around brackets and wires, especially during big meals or sugary treats. Pack a travel toothbrush, fluoride toothpaste, and flossers, and make it part of your day, no matter where you are. Patients with clear alignersshould also rinse trays after eating and brush them twice a day to avoid trapped bacteria and tray discoloration.
Consistency counts. Keeping your teeth and appliances clean supports smooth progress throughout your orthodontic treatment.
Holiday Food To Avoid With Braces
The holidays are full of festive favorites, but some of those dishes can spell trouble for your brackets and wires. Metal braces and clear braces aren’t built to handle everything on the dessert table, in the snack bowl, or main course menu, so knowing what to skip can help you avoid a halt to the festivities with an unexpected visit to your orthodontist or preventable discomfort.
Example foods to say, “No, thank you,” to this season:
- Candy Canes & Peppermint Bark(hard and sticky is a bad combo)
- Pecan Pie & Caramel Desserts(chewy fillings can pull at brackets)
- Toffee, Brittle, or Nut Clusters(these can crack a bracket or wire instantly)
- Popcorn (even if it’s just a once-a-year holiday treat, it can still cause problems)
- Hard Dinner Rolls or Crusty Artisan Bread(too tough to bite into safely; can break brackets or get stuck and cause discomfort)
- Roasted Nuts & Green Bean Casserole with Crunchy Toppings(small, hard pieces can pop off brackets or bend wires)
- Stuffing with Nuts or Dried Fruit(sticky, chewy textures can get lodged between brackets)
Fortunately, there are still plenty of softer holiday classics, like mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, stuffing, baked apples, casseroles without crunchy toppings, baked ham, and tender meats, that are all delicious and orthodontic-treatment-friendly for all Windsorand Fort Collins bracespatients.
Take Your Orthodontic Treatment Essentials To Every Holiday Event
This time of year often brings lots of moving around: holiday work get-togethers, family time, Friendsgivings, and the like. Sometimes it’s a quick car ride or road trip away, sometimes it’s a plane booked weeks in advance. Either way, you need to remember to pack your orthodontic kit every single time. A small travel kit can make a big difference in keeping your teeth clean and your treatment on track without disrupting the fun.
Your kit should include:
- Travel-Sized Toothbrush & Toothpaste:Brushing after every big holiday meal keeps your brackets clear and your teeth healthy. Travel sizes make it easy when you’re away from home.
- Floss, Floss Picks, & Water Flossers:No one wants to feel cranberry stuck between their brackets all night or have it pushed against their gums by their aligners. Floss and water flossers make removing trapped leftovers simple and convenient.
- Orthodontic Wax:If a bracket starts to rub or a new tray is pinching your cheek, wax adds quick relief.
- Elastic Bands:If they’re part of your treatment plan, make sure you bring more than enough to last the trip. Trust us, we’ll know if you didn’t!
These small items can help you stay consistent with your routine, feel comfortable while you’re away, and avoid extra time in the treatment chair when you get back to Fort Collinsor Windsor.
Don’t Forget Your Clear Aligner Case
If you wear clear aligners, your case should be at the top of your “To Pack” list. It might seem harmless to set your trays on a napkin while you eat, but napkins get thrown away, especially during busy family dinners, when everyone just wants to quickly clear the table to play games. Even if your family knows better, can you trust Uncle Bob’s new puppy not to grab them off the table? Or your little cousins not to cut them up and use them as part of their holiday craft project when no one is looking? You don’t want to spend your holiday digging through garbage or explaining to the Goings Orthodontics teamhow you couldn’t wear your aligners because they have glitter glue on them.
The case protects your trays from damage, keeps them clean, and gives you one less thing to worry about during the holidays. If you keep it with you, your aligners will always have a safe place to go, and your treatment won’t miss a beat.
Wear Your Aligners As Directed
Holiday schedules can get unpredictable, but your alignerroutine shouldn’t. Between travel days, long meals, and late nights with friends and family, it’s easy to forget to put your trays back in after eating. A few missed hours might not seem like much in the moment, but they can add up quickly, resulting in slowed progress or discomfort when you wear them again.
Your aligners need 20 to 22 hours of daily wear to work effectively and efficiently. Leaving them out too long may give your teeth time to shift in the wrong direction. That can lead to delays in your treatment or the need for extra trays down the line. If you want to enjoy your new smile sooner rather than later, try setting a phone reminder or using a clear aligner tracking appduring the holidays so you don’t forget about treatment. Don’t forget to bring all the aligners you’ll need if you’ll be away from home for an extended time, including an extra set for emergencies.
Schedule Appropriately
We know how quickly calendars fill up this time of year. If you have an appointment scheduled with your orthodontist in Fort Collinsor Windsor, try to stick with it. Adjustments and check-ins are important to your progress, even during the holidays.
If something comes up and you need to reschedule, let us know as early as possible so we can find another time that works. With two locations and flexible scheduling, we’ll help your appointments stay on track without stress.
Stay Consistent, Stay Confident With Goings Orthodontics
The holidays should be filled with laughter, memories, and confident smiles, not orthodontic setbacks. Staying consistent with your oral hygiene routine, keeping your care kit handy, and making smart choices ensures your smile treatment progresses through every party, trip, and family gathering. If you ever have questions or need an appointment, our Fort Collinsand Windsorteams are here to help.
Ready to start your smile transformation? Contact Goings Orthodonticstoday to schedule your free consultationwith Dr. Goings!
