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The spooky season is just around the corner, releasing packs of ghosts and ghouls in search of sweets. While your child may love the idea of a bag full of candy, you may be worried about how these treats will impact their dental care. Luckily, being proactive is all it takes to ensure Halloween doesn’t play any tricks on your child’s smile. Here’s a closer look at some basic ground rules you should set.

How to Manage Your Kids’ Candy Haul This Halloween

1. Set Snacking Limits

While sugar isn’t good for your child’s oral health, it’s even worse to let this sticky substance sit on the teeth for too long. When leftover food particles aren’t removed from the tooth’s surface, they begin to attack the enamel, which protects the inner, sensitive layer of your teeth.

To prevent this damage, set limits on candy snacking for your children, such as only a few pieces after lunch or dinner, and then have them follow up with their regular dental care routine of brushing and flossing when done.    

2. Encourage Lots of Water

dental careMake sure to have plenty of water on hand to give to your children when they finish snacking on their Halloween stash. Sweets like chocolate and caramel have a tendency to coat the teeth and get stuck in between, causing decay to accelerate. Encourage your children to swish some water around in their mouth to help remove this debris, especially if brushing isn’t an option at the time.

3. Swap Out Sticky & Hard Candy

Sticky treats and hard candies can cause more physical damage to your child’s teeth than others. Sticky sweets like taffy and chewy nougat are more difficult to remove than others and can also pull out any fillings your child may already have. Meanwhile, jawbreakers and lollipops may chip and fracture teeth, leading to restorative work. 

Have the kids trade these in for safer options, such as chocolate bars and chewable sour candy. They’ll still get a full bounty, and you’ll have more peace of mind.

 

If you’re looking for more ways to help your child maintain a healthy smile during Halloween, consult the team at Alaska Dentistry for Kids in Anchorage. These professionals offer a wide range of dental care services to improve the health of your child’s pearly whites, including preventive and restorative treatments. To learn more about this practice of dental professionals, visit them online or call (907) 274-2525.

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