What Candies Are The Worst For My Teeth?

Posted on 7/25/2016 by Fairmount Dental Center

It seems that our children are constantly being given candy. Increasingly, more holidays are being taken over by the candy industry and our kids come home with pockets full.

There are so many concerns that parents share with this surge of candy, they worry about excess unnecessary calories, about the lack of nutritional value, and the concern for what the candy is doing to their teeth.

So, with each holiday, parents wonder what candy choices will make both their children happy and allow parents to worry less. Some candy is better than others for their teeth.

Candy to Avoid

Help you child make good choices on the candy they consume when it's presented to them.

•	Avoid candy that is mostly sugar and can fill in the nooks and crannies in your child's teeth, such as candy corn
•	Avoid candy that is sticky. Candies that are chewy or sticky will stick to teeth just as they would stick to fingers, and can be easily missed when brushing.
•	Avoid gummy candies. Again, gummy candies can get into those grooves in your child's teeth that will make it hard to remove and increase the chances of causing decay.

Candy that is Better

Your dental experts will always caution you to restrict your child's access to sugar and candy. But, for those special occasions, there are candies that are better for your child's teeth. This includes:

•	Lollipops that are sucked. Lollipops are time consuming in eating which may satisfy your child's desire for sweets and help them consume less. Lollipops also induce saliva while they are sucking on them, the saliva will help combat the extra sugar present.
•	Hard Candies work much the same way as lollipops, they are time consuming to ingest and increase the production of saliva.
•	Dark Chocolate has been shown to have many healthy benefits. It will satisfy your child's desire for a treat and is lower in sugar than milk chocolate.

Please contact us if you have any questions about dental friendly foods.

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