The Scoop on Halloween Candy and your Teeth – Some are worse than you think…
It’s that exciting time of the year when kids get to dress up in cute costumes and collect candy in their pumpkin-shaped baskets. Sadly, teeth and candy were not exactly made for each other and without proper oral hygiene and regular visits to your dentist, candy is often the cause of cavities. As your healthcare professionals, we believe that prevention is better than treatment. We would like to keep you informed of the danger of certain types of Halloween candy, so you can avoid handing them to your kids or your neighbors’ kids on a Halloween night.
1. Sour Brite Crawlers
Sour crawlers are worm-shaped gummies coated with citric acid, lactic acid, and fumaric acid. They tend to get stuck in the crevices of your teeth. While they’re in there, the acid slowly dissolves your enamel away.
2. WarHeads
WarHeads are infamous for their extreme sour taste, which comes from malic acid that is coated on the outer layer. With a pH of 1.6, it is said to be nearly as acidic as battery acid (pH 1.0). These yummy candies can dissolve your enamel, and soften your teeth for bacterial invasion.
3. Sour! Nerds
Not only are these pebble shaped candies very acidic, they dissolved rapidly in your mouth and unleash great amount of sugar for the oral bacteria to feed on.
4. Caramel Candy
Caramel has a very high sugar content. Additionally, they cling to teeth like glue. Patients sometimes even have old fillings pulled out by caramel. A word of advice, if you must have some caramel candies, patiently wait till it dissolves in your mouth.
5. Candy Apple
Candy apple is dangerous for the same reason as caramel. Additionally, sometimes they are as hard as rocks! Children can easily chip a front tooth when taking a big bite of this tasty treat.
6. StarBurst
Starbursts are incredibly delicious fruit flavored chewy candies. The problem is, once they get stuck between your teeth, they tend to stay there for a prolonged period of time, allowing bacteria to feed on it while excreting acid that eventually causes cavities.
7. Jaw Breaker
Hard candies are generally healthier since they don’t stick to your teeth. However, because of the size of this huge, tennis ball treat, it takes much longer to dissolve. Which means your teeth are bathed in sugar for a prolonged period of time. Good news for germs, bad news for your teeth.
8. Milk Duds
Caramel coated with chocolate. Not only are these candies loaded with calories, the caramel inside can easily pull out dental appliances that could’ve cost hundreds!
These are just some, but not all of the examples of which Halloween candy that should be avoided. In general, hard and non-sour candy is better for your teeth, because they are less likely to get stuck in your teeth, and are less acidic. Moreover, after you have some candy, make sure you wash it down with some unsweetened beverages. Better yet, brush your teeth immediately after the treat.
