Three Things that Can Be Bad for Your Kids’ Dental Health

Posted August 25, 2016

Every parent wants to see his or her kids grow up healthy and strong. Unfortunately, when it comes to children’s dental health, many parents don’t know about the many potential threats their smiles will face on a daily basis. In fact, they may actually be serving them foods that could be bad for their teeth. If you want to avoid chips, cracks and cavities, here are a few foods that have no business in your kids’ diet, and a few others that should be used sparingly and thoughtfully, in order to protect their oral health.

Be Careful with Crunchy Items

Whether you are sending them to school with extra crispy pretzels, allowing your kids to chew on plain ice out of boredom, or serving up popsicles as after-dinner treats, it is important to realize that overly crunchy items can be extremely damaging to the teeth. That is because the teeth are strong, but they are not designed to chew through overly hard substances. Avoid crunchy items, as much as possible, in order to protect your kids’ teeth.

Think Twice When It Comes to Citrus

While fruits provide a great many nutrients, and are an important part of a health diet, some fruits, such as citrus fruits, can be extremely high in acidity. Over time, acidic foods can begin to wear away at the teeth’s enamel, eventually leading to cavities and other dental health issues. For this reason, it is best to limit teeth’s exposure to citrus fruits, by serving citrus fruits and juices at a time when kids can brush soon after, and avoiding lemon-based drinks, since beverages spend much more time on the teeth than most foods.

Use Caution with Sticky, Chewy Foods

One of the biggest culprits behind many dental issues is sticky and chewy foods, which cling to the surface of teeth, allowing bacteria to feed on them, and leading to enamel damage. Even many seemingly health foods are extremely chewy, and therefore problematic.

In general, fresh fruit is a healthier choice than dried fruits (many of which are sticky and chewy), and chewy candies should be avoided.