Dental Cavities Just Love Halloween Candy Binges

Halloween is a fantastic holiday for families to enjoy their neighborhoods, and gives children a chance to fill their jack-o-lanterns with some serious candy. As fun as it is for children, Halloween candy is terrible for teeth. Here’s why cavities thrive on Halloween candy, and how you can help your child enjoy their Halloween candy without ruining their teeth. 

Candy Tends to Stick Around 

This Halloween, your child will receive candy of all kinds – but try to be on the lookout for hard candy, since it can damage teeth. Hard candy can crack teeth, and it also tends to stick around longer than other candy, which exposes teeth to sugar for longer. Also watch out for sticky candy, which can get stuck in tooth crevices and stay around long after it’s been swallowed. Sticky candy is difficult to remove from teeth, and gives cavity-causing bacteria more time to eat away enamel.

Sour Candy is Packed with Acid 

Sour candy can leave teeth susceptible to cavities more so than any other candy. That’s because sour candy contains a high amount of acid, which is what makes it so sour. The acidity can eat away tooth enamel, and leave teeth vulnerable to cavities.

Candy is Full of Sugar – and Cavities Feed on Sugar 

Sugar feeds the harmful bacteria on your teeth, which creates an acid that erodes enamel. This causes plaque and ultimately cavities, which is why you should limit the number of Halloween treats your child enjoys.

Frequent Candy Consumption Hurts

Unchecked snacking on Halloween candy can expose teeth to a steady amount of sugar, which feeds bad bacteria that erodes tooth enamel and causes decay. Monitor your child’s Halloween candy intake, and make sure that they are drinking plenty of water, which will help wash away food debris and accumulated sugar. Or, give them a specific snack time to reduce overexposing their teeth to sugar. 

How to Help Your child Avoid Binging on Halloween Candy 

1 – limit the amount of candy your child has to a few pieces per day. 

2 – create a candy schedule where you can monitor when your child enjoys candy. 

3 – keep your children’s candy stashed away where only you can access it. 

4 – make sure your child brushes their teeth and flosses thoroughly after enjoying candy to remove any damaging food debris left behind. 

Be Sure to Brush this Halloween! 

This holiday season, be sure that your child maintains a positive oral health routine. It’s important that your children brush their teeth twice per day for two minutes and flosses once per day if you want to keep cavities away. This is especially important when consuming foods that contain high amounts of sugar.