Nutrition is important when comes to your child’s health, and their teeth and gums. Many of the things associated with school lunches involve the beloved snacks and sugar-laden treats. We see packing lunches as an opportunity. It means setting new patterns for mouth-healthy snacks for our kids to pack off to school!
Good nutrition is vital to overall health and whether we’re big or small, short or tall, what we eat for snacks doesn’t have to be an exception to an overall healthy diet. The first thing you can do is think about what you’re eating. Does it have processed sugar in it? It turns out that the plaque on kids’ teeth loves to eat sugar, too! The plaque turns that sugar into acids and those acids are bad news for any teeth, let alone tiny, growing ones. Another choice would be a better one.
Another thing to consider is when and how frequently your child snacks. If you eat sweets, it’s best to eat them after meals. Those acids linger for about 20 minutes after eating before they are neutralized. If your child nibbles on sugary snacks throughout the day, it would be better to snack less if healthier alternatives aren’t available. You can start building some good healthy snack habits this school year. If you’d like specific advice, we can come up with more tips and tricks for your lunch bags!
At Westerville Pediatric Dental, we really love helping kids improve their oral health, appearance, and overall confidence with regular checkups. Call us today to see how we can help. This year, be sure to pack your little ones off with not just one apple, but two! One for the teacher and one for your child’s teeth!
