October is over, but candy is still on the minds of many, including the dentists and hygienists at the Placerville Dental Group. Our Placerville dental professionals want you and your family to avoid the ghoulish results of tooth decay that haunt you long after October has gone.
Three Bad Candies for Decay
Here are three types of candy that are worse for your teeth than others. Cut down on or eliminate these for better oral health.
Sour Candy: Some say the more sour the better! However, eating too many too many of these candies will also leave you with a sour expression. Acidity severely weakens tooth enamel and leaves it vulnerable to decay.
Gummy and sticky candy: Nougat, gummy bears, and toffee, naming a few, are all delicious, but there’s a bad side to that chewy satisfaction. Sticky sweets stick to teeth long after you swallow. The longer the sugars stay on your teeth, the higher risk for developing cavities as bacteria feed on the captive carbohydrates.
Hard Candy: Sucking on hard candy is like bathing your teeth in sugar for long periods of time. One dentist described sucking on hard candy this way: “Instead of the saliva having an opportunity to wash the teeth as much as possible, the hard candy makes the sugar stay in your mouth for longer and that exposes the teeth to the sugar for longer, not allowing saliva to do its job.”
This doesn’t mean you can’t ever eat sweets. Dark chocolate is not as harmful to teeth and is more readily rinsed away with saliva. If you do indulge in hard, sour, or sticky candy, rinse your mouth out with water shortly afterward to limit damage to your teeth. Later, after water and saliva have washed away any remaining acids, brush and floss your teeth. Occasional sweets don’t have to result in tooth decay with a good daily oral care routine and regular visits to our Placerville dental clinic.
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