October is a spirited season full of spooky frights and delicious treats, but it’s also Dental Hygiene Awareness Month. Whether you plan to indulge in pumpkin spice lattes or sneak a few goodies from your kid’s Halloween stash, it’s important to remember to take care of your teeth. Paying attention to what you eat matters because some foods cause dental problems, like chips, cracks, and breaks. Though your dentist probably has multiple solutions to mend them if something happens, why not avoid injury in the first place? Keep reading to learn 3 infamous foods that can hurt your smile.
Food #1: Hard Candy
With bags of candy on every store aisle, it can feel nearly impossible to resist getting some for yourself. Hard candies, however, are known to fracture teeth if you try biting into them. You might think you’d be better off waiting for them to dissolve in your mouth, but that’s not the case. Bear in mind that sugar attracts harmful bacteria that contribute to the growth of cavities and gum disease. Waiting for hard candies to dissolve exposes your teeth to sugar for a longer period. If you can’t resist the candy aisle, opt for dark chocolate instead. It dissolves faster in your mouth, contains less sugar, and has antioxidants as an added boost.
Food #2: Popcorn
If you’ve ever been to a fall fair or festival, you probably enjoyed the savory scent of popcorn in the air. This salty snack is frequently sold at events and gatherings for adults and children alike. It also often contains seeds that haven’t popped and are known to damage your pearly whites. Furthermore, the popped kernels can wedge between them which can also cause problems. Many patients accidentally break their teeth trying to remove something from between them with a utensil or other object.
Food #3: Nuts
Nothing says fall like finding a harvest of nuts at the local farmer’s market. Acorns, almonds, chestnuts, peanuts, and more can all be found with relative ease. Nuts are notorious for being hard to crack into and often are difficult to chew, though. People often pry open the hard outer shells using their teeth, which can crack them. Sometimes even biting into the meaty nut itself can chip them if they’re already vulnerable or compromised. This is true for dishes containing nuts as ingredients, too, like soups, salads, and nutrition bars.
Now that you know which foods to avoid, you can keep your smile happy and whole the entire season!
About the Practice
At Distinctive Dentistry, patients benefit from 3 skilled dentists who believe everyone deserves comfortable, efficient, and effective care using new technology and techniques. They provide general, restorative, and cosmetic dental services to the entire family. If you’ve chipped a tooth, they can restore it for you! To make an appointment, feel free to contact the office on the website or by calling (770) 445-6606.
