Taking Care of Your Kids' Teeth This Halloween

Halloween is great fun for kids- getting to dress up like your favourite character AND getting a whole bunch of candy positively delights children! Stopping potential cavities is not exactly high on the kid-priority-list that night. So what can parents do to protect their kids teeth during Halloween?

Everyone knows that candy can cause serious tooth decay but there are several ways parents can minimize the damage:

1. Reduce the amount of candy eaten.

Eating some candy won’t cause instantaneous cavities but if your child is eating huge quantities of sugary treats the likelihood of them getting cavities is much greater.

2. Reduce the amount of time that decay-causing sugar stays in their mouth.

The longer the decay-causing sugar stays in your child’s mouth, the more damage is done. Have your child brush their teeth as soon as possible after consuming their Halloween bounty. The sooner you brush, the less damage is done. If brushing right away isn’t possible than have them rinse their mouth with water or chew sugarless gum. Gums that contain xylitol help to control the nasty tooth-decay causing bacteria.

3. Reduce the amount of sticky candy your child consumes.

Sticky candies like caramels and gummy bears stick to the teeth a lot more and cause more damage.

4. Reduce the amount of pop your child drinks.

Sugary pop is absolutely loaded with sugar and is acidic enough to dissolve away the tooth enamel. Kids often sip pop slowly too which means that sugar and acid stays on their teeth a whole lot longer.

5. Ask your dentist to put sealants on your child’s teeth before Halloween.

Sealants are put into the grooves of the teeth and do an excellent job of helping to protect the teeth from decay.

With a little bit of extra care parents can protect their child’s teeth this Halloween because cavities are never fun!