We know you eat things on the “do not eat list”. We know that you are extra super special careful and you don’t ever knock a bracket off. However, when brackets come loose and wires get bent, you can extend your treatment by months and can wind up having to pay for having brackets reattached if it happens too often. Here are the big ones to avoid at all costs:

10. Jolly Ranchers

On this list you will find foods that are sticky and pull on your teeth and foods that are hard and will knock brackets off. Jolly Ranchers are the best (or worst) of both worlds and will get sticky and crunchy while you eat them.

9. Apples

An apple a day keeps the doctor away, sure. But if you eat a whole apple you’re putting a ton of strain on your brackets. If you want to eat apples, slice them up first or skin them so that you’re biting into the flesh of the apple and not cutting through that skin with your teeth.

8. Corn on the Cob

Another healthy food that will jack you up if you have braces. The cob itself is hard and has plenty of stuff on it that will tear at your braces, pulling them right off your teeth. Cut the corn off the cob first and enjoy!

7. Starbursts, Caramels, etc

These are the sucking candies that are going to pull at your braces the entire time you eat them. Even if they don’t yank a bracket off, you’re going to have a heck of a time cleaning out your braces afterwards. It’s much better to just avoid them entirely.

6. Pizza Crust

I love pizza. I eat a lot of pizza. I’m not saying you can’t eat pizza. I’m saying that the hard crust on the outside is not a friend to braces and that once you get to the end of the cheese you should call it quits or tear the inside of the crust out and eat that.

5. Pretzels

Not much to say here. Pretzels are small and hard and extra good with mustard. Wait. I mean pretzels are small and hard and are almost designed to target small pieces of metal attached to your teeth. Just say no.

4. Fingernails

I’m terrible about chewing my fingernails. I know you bite them when you’re nervous, but they pop up and get caught in braces and wires and getting them out can put too much pressure on your poor braces. Get some clippers.

3. Gum

I know. I know you chew sugarless gum. I did it too. Don’t chew gum with sugar at all and try to cut out as much sugarless gum as possible. It sucks at your brackets and wires and can really get everything out of whack. It’s hard, but it’s necessary.

2. Popcorn

Popcorn kernels get caught in my gums and between my teeth and I’m not even wearing braces. Getting them out can be a real pain. Getting those kernels out of braces can cause a lot of damage and pain. Eating the unpopped kernels? Yeah, let’s not go there. See pretzels for more information on small hard objects designed to remove braces.

1. Ice

Ice is one of the top things we hear when we ask how someone knocked their braces loose. It starts out large and hard and becomes small and hard as you chew it. I don’t care how careful you are, if you chew ice you’re eventually going to knock a bracket off.

May is National Teen Self Esteem Month. In this day and age of bullying and online harassment, self esteem is more important than ever for teens everywhere, including right here in Henry County. Obviously, we can help you if part of your worry is your teeth (call our office for a free consultation if you feel like we can help), but let’s also look at how you can help yourself to have better self esteem every day.

The key to self esteem is that word “self”. One’s self image is extremely important however, with teens especially, self image is often influenced heavily by outside forces including peers, parents, and TV and magazine presentations of an unobtainable version of “normal”.  Here are a few things we have learned that can help to increase your self esteem every day:

• Everyone is not watching you all the time. I know it feels like everyone is keying in on the one thing that bothers you the most about yourself every hour of every day, but I can tell you that they are not. How do I know they aren’t? They’re so worried that you’re looking at their perceived faults that they don’t have time to worry about you nearly as much as you do. Once you realize this fact, you suddenly become far more free to be yourself.

• Set and accomplish a goal every day. Far too often we set goals that are too large to be easily attainable. When you set a goal of cutting out fast food, carbs, exercising five times a week and losing 20 pounds, you’re setting yourself up to fail and increase your sense of self doubt. Instead, set the goal that you’re going to make one good eating decision at every meal today. Whether that is having carrots instead of chips with lunch or turning down that extra helping of mac and cheese at dinner, you’re accomplishing something positive in small steps and as these steps add up, you are virtually guaranteed to feel better about yourself.

• You are a special snowflake and your opinion has value. Don’t be afraid to speak up with your opinions. People that are worth spending time with will listen and value your opinion and the people that don’t probably aren’t going to be a big help in the self esteem department anyway, so why should you listen to them in the first place?

• Learn something new every day. It doesn’t matter if it’s a friend’s birthday or the Pythagorian Theorem. If you learn something that you didn’t know yesterday, it will make you feel more knowledgeable and that leads to feeling better about yourself.

• The media is trying to sell you something. That model or actor isn’t what “normal” should be. They are there to sell you a movie or a pair of jeans or lipstick. You should be happy with the you that you are, not constantly feeling bad that you’re not more like someone that has almost certainly been photographed in the perfect light and setting and then retouched in Photoshop.

Finally, if you are having extreme problems with your self esteem, talk to someone you trust. A close friend, a parent, or a teacher can all see you in a different light than the one you see yourself in and can help you to see yourself that way too. If your problem is more severe and immediate, please contact TeenCentral.net for help as soon as possible. There are websites and phone numbers that you can contact immediately.

Your self esteem is a fragile thing and some days it seems one offhand comment can shatter it. Take the time to examine what it is that has upset you and what you can do to fix that thing and you’ll be on your way to being a happier and more confident person.

We know that this is an extremely busy time and that patients may need to change appointments. Please call our office at (770)-474-7177 if you need to change an appointment and we will be sure to get you in as soon as possible. Congratulations on another great school year and we look forward to seeing everyone this summer! 29HAPRF379C9

Congratulations to Drew and Ellen Adams for winning the first Refer A Friend iPod!

We feel like our patients know us best and while you can learn a lot from a web site or word of mouth, coming into the office and meeting the staff and Dr. Collins is the best way to get to know us.

We will be starting a new contest soon, so keep those referral cards coming in and maybe you can be the next winner..

How would you like to win a brand new iPod Touch? It’s easy! All you have to do is print the card below or come into the office and grab a card from the front desk. Hand that card to a friend and have them make an appointment for a free consultation. When they come in with the card, your name will automatically be entered!

Click here to print the card.

Please be on the lookout here at www.goodgrins.com for more contests, games, and specials here in the future. If you have questions, ideas, or thoughts, please e-mail collinsortho@goodgrins.com and we’ll be sure to get back to you as soon as possible.