yes i have experience eating with rubberbands and it is all that bad expect when your rubberbands snap.it is possible to open your mouth wide enough to eat and chew comfortably.

after you take your rubberbands out your suppose to put new ones in

Eating with elastics is difficult. It's hard to open your mouth wide enough to chew and they'll end up snapping eventually.

It's a lot easier to take them out, eat, clean, and then put in a fresh set of elastics.

Elastics come in many varying tensions, so I'd assume the tighter ones could possibly inhibit eating.

back when i had braces i used to have an elastic at one side of my mouth, i remember eating with it on. It wasn't  that hard to do.

It of course depends on the elastic configuration you have, for me its ok to eat with them. Just once an elastic broke. Food that glues like hot cheese I eat without elastics, everything else with them in. I feel very strange and naked when I put the elastics out after so long 24/7 wearing, much like a withdrawel feeling like when you have no cigarettes ..
Oh and i have the 1.8N elastics (v. Strong) but not from molars to front teeth, but up 4th to down 3rd+4th on each side. (up 4th to down 3rd and 4th the last 3 months)

When I had braces and elastics, my orthodontist told me to take them out when eating and to change them a few times a day, so I'd take them out before eating and then put new ones in afterwards.

... from what I've seen he always keeps them in. I guess they snap a lot though when you eat with them

Mine rarely snap when eating.  If you're wearing the correct size and strength, quality elastics will not break from 'normal' wear.

I had a few elastics break over a month or two and my ortho found that they were rubbing on a part of the bracket that was slightly rough.  He smoothed it, and I've not had a problem since.