Eating with a Palate Expander

[PollyannaMom]

DS got a palate expander (pre-braces) today, and is having trouble adjusting to eating with it. He's not in pain, just figuring out how to chew differently. It gets in the way if he chews in the back, but when he nibbles with the front, the food goes over it.

If your kids had one, which foods went especially well for them?

 

[aejammers]

My DS ate a lot of soup at first until he got used to it. Yogurt too. Anything soft, really, that didn't need much chewing. And I have to mention that getting him a WaterPik was a life saver. He would run up and use it right away after every meal. It would squirt out any food that was stuck.

 

[brookmey]

Both my kids have expanders and the only foods they stay away from are small things, like M&Ms or peanuts. They just learned to adjust their chewing to whatever they were eating. It does take some time to get used to chewing, talking, etc., with the expander. It took my kids about a week of eating the food they normally do to figure out the best way. Keep toothpicks, handy, though!

 

[Disneychix]

At first we did a lot of rinsing with water after eating. It was gross. My DS didn't really complain about eating much. He kept a pretty normal diet, just had to eat slower, smaller bites. He was always sticking his fingers up there to get big chunks out, usually bread products so stay away from those.
He's about to get his out and I'm still reminding him to take smaller bites!

 

[Disneychix]

Also wanted to add, stay away from pineapple if possible. Those stringy parts are still stuck on it after months I think! It was not on the no/no list and we told our Ortho I think it should be added!

 

[Vaughn4380]

My sister had one (many, many, years ago, lol). After a week or so she figured out how to eat anything she wanted.

 

[soccerdad72]

Give him a couple days - he'll get used to it. The first few days try to stick to food that isn't stringy or if things get stuck, have him get comfortable with using the tools that the orthodontist probably gave him. My 10-year old got pretty good with getting food unstuck from his expander after a day or two.

 

[Arkansan]

All three of my kids have had one and it took a few days of getting used to it, but they all adjusted eventually. There was a lot of slurping! One food that they didn't really adjust to eating was lettuce. My DS doesn't really eat it, but my DDs do. They just avoided salads and lettuce on sandwiches for the 6 months or so that they wore the expanders.

If you are in the process of turning the expander, I HIGHLY recommend a lighted turner instead of the cheap generic one the orthodontist probably gave you. Our previous orthodontist gave us a lighted one (like a dental tool with a built in flashlight) and I, of course threw it away when we moved since two of the three kids had had expanders and I thought we were done. Nope! The current orthodontist had never seen the lighted tool, so I called the previous one to get the name of the company. Since I'm not a Provider, I had to order three or five, but the $25 it cost me saved TONS of aggravation! It is called the " AcuLight expansion scre key" from Great Lakes Orthodontics. Seriously, get one. (Or 5 since I believe that is the minimum order.). It will save you!

 

[Arkansan]

Sorry, that is the "AcuLight expansion screw key." I don't work for them, but I do think that tool will help you both and avoid a lot of issues.

 

[Arkansan]

Also, we did a lot of noodles at first, but not spaghetti. Spaghetti noodles are too thin for the kids initially (eventually they got it, just not the first week or two). We found the spiral noodles, rigatoni, or elbow macaroni were easier to eat and didn't get stuck as much. Soft foods like bananas and yogurt, too.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Thanks, everyone! He feels so much better knowing that others were able to adjust fairly quickly!