As pediatric dentists our least favorite holiday is the one that you are essentially required to consume mass amounts of candy. But, there are things you can do to make the holiday a little more “palatable.”
Here are some of our Halloween tips:
- Watch out for your braces! No sticky candies for kids with braces, you can risk breaking your appliance or brackets;
- Give out toys (or toothbrushes!) to trick or treaters;
- Choose chocolate over gummies – gummies or caramels can dislodge fillings. Also, chocolate candies are naturally cleared away a little easier from the tooth than sticky candies which, as you can guess, “stick” around;
- Watch out for hidden sugar – things like juices or pureed fruit pouches contain a lot of sugar;
- Let kids eat as much candy as you’ll allow in one night and then throw out or donate the rest;
- Finally, before trick or treating make sure your child eats a well-balanced meal to reduce the chances of them filling up on empty sugar!
Have a Happy and Haunted Halloween!