Orange County Dentist Offers Tips for a Cavity Free Halloween!

Our best advice for Halloween: Easy on the Sweets! :)

Halloween is known for a few things, but one of the most prominent aspects of Halloween is the act of giving and receiving candy. Adults love candy just as much as children, but unfortunately candy poses risks to your dental health! This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy your Halloween, but there are a few tips you could follow to make sure you and your children have a cavity-free Halloween!

Focus on the Chocolates

Ask any dentist around Halloween what candy they prefer and a majority of them will say chocolate. Milk chocolates contain the most sugar of all forms of chocolate, but it’s still considerably less than some candies that are basically pure blocks of sugar. In short, it’s the lesser of two evils.

We recommend dark chocolate that contains a high cacao content. Not only is dark chocolate very low in sugar content (especially if it contains a high cacao content), but it also comes packed with nutritional benefits such as flavonoids, which can help regulate blood pressure and even prevent heart disease, among others.

Savor the Flavor

When you “savor the flavor”, you purposely chew on a piece of food at a slower rate than normal so that you are exposed to the flavor longer. Now, we’re not saying apply this to your candy, but rather, apply this to the consumption of your candy.

In short, we’re saying try not to consume all of your candy in one week, rather, space it out by a few months or perhaps even longer so that you are not exposing your mouth to as much sugar.

We’re sure you’ve heard it before but… moderation is key!

Giving Feels Better Than Receiving

If you’re the type who feels guilty indulging in sweets, then we highly suggest giving it away. Not only are you making someone else’s day, but also you’re taking a proactive approach in keeping your oral health up-to-par, and that’s something to be proud of. Plus, the feeling of brightening someone’s day simply put – feels good. Pat yourself on the back for us.

Visit Your Dentist

We wouldn’t be great dentists if we didn’t tell you to visit your dentist for a dental checkup after the Halloween fun has begun to die down. To make sure you haven’t gone off the deep end as far as your teeth are concerned, we recommend taking advantage of your year end dental insurance plans by coming in to our Orange County dental office for a professional examination!

Happy Halloween from Image Dental OC!