Blog

Many families are looking forward to Halloween, but if your kid wears braces, they do need to take care. They can still enjoy this celebration, but it is important to avoid certain foods and snacks that could damage braces.

Sweet Treats That Are Best Avoided

Sticky sweets like caramel, gummy bears and taffy are incredibly difficult to remove from braces and can get stuck in between brackets, bands and wires. Very hard sweets like lollipops, sweets containing nuts, chocolate covered pretzels and caramel covered apples can all be problematic for braces and can easily break wires and loosen brackets. Popcorn is often overlooked but can be very hard, especially if you inadvertently bite on an unpopped kernel. Also, pieces of popcorn can become painfully lodged between teeth and braces.

Sweet Treats to Enjoy with Braces Safely

Even though certain things are off the menu, there is still lots to enjoy. Treats that can be eaten safely include peanut butter cups and chocolates that will melt easily and don’t require much chewing. Baked goods such as pumpkin cake or pie, or ice cream and milkshakes are all safe to eat with braces. Alternatively, you could decide to skip the sweet treats entirely and to hand out small toys, stickers, crayons and other inexpensive items. These will be a nice treat for all those kids wearing braces this Halloween.

The thought of all those Halloween goodies can be scary, but with a little creativity, it is possible to include some healthier options in the mix.

• Fill up your kid with a healthy meal before trick or treating, which can reduce the temptation to eat too much of the sweet stuff.
• Purchase or make a smaller collection container for your child to take around and encourage them only to take one sweet treat from each house.
• Instead of driving kids around, walk from house to house so everyone gets some exercise and you’ll also get to appreciate all the Halloween decorations more easily.
• Check all edible items carefully before letting your kid eat anything. Discard items that are beyond their sell-by date or which look questionable.
• Talk to your child beforehand and decide how many sweets they can take and eat and encourage them to think about the consequences of eating too much!
• If you have too many treats, donate them or freeze some favourites, or use them in baking.
• If you are staying at home and are handing out treats, include healthy choices like nuts or pumpkin seeds, sugar-free chewing gum, snack boxes of dried fruit and fresh juicy clementines or oranges decorated to look like Jack O’ Lanterns.

At this time of year sales of sweets are soaring in preparation for the sugar-fest that is Halloween.  But it is only once a year, and with a bit of planning, you can have your cake, or sweets and enjoy them too.

Chew on Chocolate

Chocolate is soft and melts easily, but it is better to chew it and not suck it. When you suck on chocolate, it takes longer to melt and is in contact with teeth for longer, increasing the risk of cavities. Generally, chocolate is a good choice for Halloween treats because it won’t last very long in the mouth.

Slurp Don’t Sip Fruit Juice or Fizzy Drinks

Fruit juices and fizzy drinks are terrible for teeth, but the sooner you guzzle them down, the better as it reduces the time your teeth are bathed in sugars.

Sticky Sweets are Worst for Teeth

Sticky sweets like caramels, taffy and toffees are terrible for teeth. They take ages to eat, and once you finally swallow the last sugary fragment, you can be sure plenty more remain trapped on and between your teeth.

After eating anything sweet, rinse your mouth with water and wait half an hour before brushing. It allows acidity levels to normalise in your mouth, reducing the damage to your pearly whites.