The holiday season is filled with celebrating, which is accompanied by a whole lot of sugary snacking. You and your children will be enjoying special treats, which is perfectly acceptable. But making sure you enjoy them in the right way will keep your teeth decay-free throughout the fall and winter months. This blog post offers a few tips the whole family can try out to see healthier teeth come springtime.
Keeping Kids’ Teeth Healthy in the Holiday Season
- Encourage the right snacking practices – Snacking is dangerous for oral health. The food we eat at mealtimes is accompanied by an adequate amount of saliva, which cleans the teeth and washes away food particles. When snacking, there’s much less saliva, leaving teeth vulnerable to acids. Have your kids eat their candy immediately after meals to limit dental damage.
- Choose healthier sweets – While you can’t always control the snacks your children receive at school and at friends’ houses, you get to make choices about the candy available in your own home. Choose treats that are friendlier on the teeth, like chocolate, salted nuts, and xylitol gum. They still taste great, and they have tooth-friendly properties.
- Don’t neglect oral hygiene – There can be so much going on during the celebrations that flossing and brushing are overlooked. Don’t allow this to happen! Make a flossing and brushing chart with every family member’s name on it to monitor your kids’ (and your own!) oral hygiene. Perhaps the most consistent brusher can win a small prize?
- Schedule dental exams in the spring – Set up your kids’ dental exams after the end of the holidays so that we can check for signs of disease after the onslaught of sweets. By spotting dental problems early, we’ll prevent widespread damage.
Pediatric Dental Health
If you have any questions about your children’s dental health, or are ready to schedule appointments, contact our office!