The holiday season is upon us. Soon, our kids will be getting all sorts of sweets and treats at school, parties, and at home with Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Much of the holidays are centered around sweet foods and candy. Be prepared with these tips on how to protect teeth from holiday sweets so that your holidays are followed up by a painful mouth of cavities for you and your kids.
How to Protect Teeth from Holiday Sweets
The holidays should be fun. A little indulgent with sweets is ok for your smile as long as you prevent your teeth (and your kids’ teeth) from remaining coated in the acid-forming sugars. Keeping your family’s smiles healthy with these tips.
Protect Teeth with Dental Sealants
Protect your kids’ teeth ahead of time with dental sealants at the dentist. Dental sealants are thing, plastic coatings that are placed on molars (around age 6+) and premolars (around age 12+). This coating fills in grooves and fissures on chewing surfaces. It is difficult to keep these surfaces clean, especially for children. This is an easy preventative measure that can be added during a routine dental visit.
Dental sealants provide a protective barrier on your child’s molars and premolars against tooth decay and cavities. This helps not only during the holidays but every single day.
Avoid Sticky Sweets
Sticky sweets like fudgy brownies, taffy, caramel, and sour candies can be extra harmful to your teeth. Sticky sweets stick to your teeth, exposing your teeth to prolonged sugar. Sticky sweets can also pull crowns and fillings out of teeth. Do your best to remove any remaining sticky sweets from your teeth if you do eat them.
Drink Water
Drink water after eating sweets. This is an easy way to rinse away excess sugar when you don’t have access to a toothbrush. Avoid drinking sugary drinks like juice and soda as they only re-coats your teeth with additional sugar.
Chew Sugar-Free Gum
Sugar-free gum can be good for your teeth as chewing promotes saliva that washes sugar and other debris away from your teeth. Be sure to get sugar-free or your adding to your problem. Look for ADA seal of approval on the gum.
Avoid Grazing
If you are going to have a sweet treat, eat it at once. Grazing all day or evening on sweets prolongs your teeth’s exposure to sugar. This sugar turns to acids and the acid can lead to tooth decay. It is better to eat your food all at one time so that you aren’t constantly exposing your teeth to sugar and acid.
Brush Your Teeth
This seems elementary but the best way to protect your teeth from holiday sweets is to brush your teeth after every meal or at least in the morning and before bed. Wait until 30 minutes after eating to brush your teeth. Your teeth are weakened after eating. You need to wait until the pH is balanced before brushing or you could actually damage your teeth if you brush while in their weakened state.
Floss Your Teeth
Don’t forget to floss. Flossing at least once daily is essential to remove particles and build-up between the teeth. Many cavities are formed between the teeth where your toothbrush cannot reach. Flossing can reduce your risk of cavities by 40% or more!
Visit Dentist Twice Yearly
Be sure to visit your dentist twice yearly for your checkup. It is really important for children to see their dentist twice yearly because of the development of their teeth. I highly recommend my children’s dentist if you live in the greater Akron, Ohio area. Dr. Adam Pollock Akron Pediatric Dentistry offers caring pediatric dentistry to children and those with special needs.
Dr. Adam Pollock D. D.S. Pediatric Dentistry
1707 Portage Trail
Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44223
(330) 929-3091
Monday – Friday 8am – 5pm
Saturdays 9am – 1pm
Dr. Adam Pollock Pediatric Dentistry is conveniently located in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, just minutes from Akron, Stow, Munroe Falls, Kent, Hudson, Peninsula, Tallmadge, Ellet, Copley, and Fairlawn, Ohio.
