Creekside Dental wants you to have a great Halloween. While we all know how dentists feel about sugary treats, the following recommendations hopefully help make sure your child’s teeth stay healthy during the sweetest holiday of the year.
1. Divide candy into portions
Divide the sweets into three separate parts. You can eat one now, save another for later, and donate or eliminate the last section. This will aid in managing sweets and prevent them from being eaten excessively. Constant exposure to harmful acids may accelerate tooth decay and cause cavities to form more rapidly.
2. Avoid Sticky Candy
Gummy bears, sour patches, and tootsie rolls are sticky sweets that stick to teeth longer and attract acid-producing bacteria, which can lead to cavities. Keeping the gloopy candy away from your teeth lowers your risk of cavities.
3. Finish the Hard Candy Quickly
Although we advocate avoiding hard sweets, if your youngster consumes them, be sure they don’t suck on the candy or keep it in their mouth for an extended time. Lollipops are one of the most sugar-intensive and calorie-dense sweets available. Prolonged exposure to acids in the mouth can cause tooth decay and multiple cavities.
4. Chocolate is the Best Option
Chocolate is the best candy. Unlike hard candy, chocolate doesn’t hurt your teeth when you chew it. And, also unlike sticky candy, it won’t get stuck in your teeth. If there is any candy that is good for our teeth, it is chocolate. Keep the chocolate treats, and enjoy them with your kids!
5. Brush Right Away and Remember to Floss
It’s vital to remind your kids to brush their teeth every time they consume sweets, especially if you want them to avoid cavities. Set a good example for them by brushing their teeth before bed and after meals.
Bacteria that cause cavities can spread from tooth to tooth, like an infection. Flossing between your teeth and brushing removes any debris the bacteria could feed on, which is essential in stopping them!
6. Participate in a candy Buy-Back Program
For Halloween, several schools and dental clinics have candy buy-back programs; this year is no exception. Encourage your child to give up the sweets and make money by selling them by offering them a candy buy-back system at school or their dentist’s office.
7. Encourage Regular Check-Ups at the dentist
There’s no way to tell whether your kids’ teeth are healthy without seeing them by a dentist. Regardless of the occasion, there is no substitute for a specialist checking your children’s teeth to ensure they don’t get cavities. Children’s teeth should be cleaned regularly to avoid new cavities from developing from cavity-causing plaque. It is feasible in some situations to prevent minor cavities from becoming major ones.
Halloween may be a fun holiday, but it’s also an excellent reminder to take care of your teeth! Make sure you keep up with dental check-ups and plaque control so you can have a healthy smile all year.