Crackers or Caramels? Which are Healthiest for Your Children's Teeth?
Myths and Facts About Diet and Children's Dental Health
CINCINNATI -- Everyone knows that the worst things for your children's teeth are sticky foods such as caramels, right? Actually, the risk of decay from a slice of bread may be greater. The following facts and tips from the division of Pediatric Dentistry at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, can help families promote proper diet and dental health.
- Cooked starches can lead to cavities just as surely as sugar can. In fact, such cooked starches as breads, crackers, pasta, pretzels and potato chips often take longer to clear the mouth than sugars, increasing the risk of tooth decay.
- About 90 percent of all foods contain sugars or starches that enable bacteria in dental plaque to produce acids. When these acids are active for at least 20 minutes, cavities and loss of tooth mineral can result.
- Science cannot tell us which foods are best or worst with respect to risk of decay.
- A food with sugar or starch is safer for teeth if it is eaten with a meal, not as a snack.
- A child who licks a piece of hard candy every few minutes to make it last longer or slowly sips a sugared drink increases the risk of tooth decay: Long lasting snacks create an acid attack on teeth for the entire time they are in the mouth.
- Snacks should be served no more than two or three times a day. Choose nutritious snacks, because if children have poor diets, their teeth may not develop properly. If a child chews gum or sips soda, select sugar-free products.
- Certain cheeses disrupt the development of cavities when eaten alone as a snack or at the end of a meal. Aged cheddar, Swiss, mozzarella and Monterey jack stimulate the flow of saliva, clearing the mouth of food debris and neutralizing acids that attack teeth.
- Calcium and phosphorus found in cheese reduce or prevent decreases in pH levels of saliva and promote remineralization of tooth enamel.
- Do not put young children to bed with a bottle of milk, formula or juice, and don't allow them unlimited access to drinks. If a child wants a drink between meals and snacks, water should be the choice. Also avoid allowing the unlimited use of a "sippy" cup unless it contains water.
- Chocolate milk is OK for children's teeth. It provides protein, calcium and vitamins.
"No food promotes tooth decay, but frequent eating and drinking does," says James Steiner, D.D.S., director of Pediatric Dentistry at Cincinnati Children's. "For proper dental health, children should minimize snacking, drink only water between meals and snacks, brush with a fluoride toothpaste at least twice a day, and have regular dental check-ups."
Contact Information
Jim Feuer (
jfeuer@chmcc.org) 513-636-4656
