The Scariest Thing On Halloween is the Candy

Halloween is around the corner. Halloween usually means fun in costumes, falling autumn leaves, carved pumpkins, and lots and lots of candy! And what does lots and lots of candy cause? If you guessed lots and lots of cavities, you’re right!

Those who have over-indulged on Halloween, or the weeks leading up to it, know all too well the feeling of being bloated, tired, and breaking out in pimples the next day. If that weren’t enough to stop you and your kids from overindulging, I’ll also explain how Halloween candy damages your teeth.

How Eating Candy Leads To Plaque and Cavities

Your mouth is a very active and complex ecosystem of both good and bad bacteria. There are thousands of microbes in your mouth.

While that sounds gross, the good bacteria actually protect you from bad breath, and they are important for saliva production, acid control, and digestion. Oral microbes work in communities to help each other survive. You can think of it as a war between the good bacteria and the bad bacteria. In this war, the harmful bacteria work together to create a slimy, sticky material called a matrix. It’s this matrix that makes plaque so difficult to remove.

When you eat candy, the harmful bacteria metabolizes sugar into tooth-destroying lactic acids that destroy the tooth enamel, which is the shiny, protective outer layer of the tooth. Cavities are actually bacterial infections. When you develop a cavity, a hole in your tooth forms, which worsens over time if it’s left untreated.

Which Candy Is the Scariest?

Although they all are quite scary when you think about what they do to your body and teeth in particular, chewy, sticky candy might be the worst. Gummies, taffy, tootsie rolls, Starburst, caramels, including the Halloween favorite caramel apple, top the list.

Sticky candy is detrimental to teeth, because it gets caught between, making it hard for the saliva to wash away. Sticky candy puts you at a high risk of tooth decay.

The next scariest type of candy is probably sour candy. Sour candy is deceiving because it contains tons of sugar, which some don’t recognize because the candy tastes sour rather than sweet. Additionally, it’s highly acidic. Acidity breaks down tooth enamel. Some examples of sour candy are skittles, lemon drops, warheads, and so on.

How to Save Your Teeth On Halloween

• Drink Lots of Water: water can minimize some of the harmful effects of sugar and wash away candy remains from the teeth. If you or your children eat candy and can’t brush immediately after, swish around some water in your mouth. Drink a minimum of half your body weight, in ounces of water daily. If you weigh 130 lbs, drink 65 ounces of water each day.
• Stay Away From Sticky and Sour Candy (see explanation above)
• Eat a meal high in fat and protein. The fat and protein balance blood sugar to help prevent sugar and carb cravings. When blood sugar is low, the body wants to bring the blood sugar level up, and typically that’s when we reach for a candy bar.
• Brush and floss more than usual.

I am Dr. Yury Slepak, and I am known as the best kids dentist in Brooklyn. For more information and to schedule your appointment, please call my office at 718.998.2424. My office is located at 2464 Coney Island Ave Brooklyn NY.

Stay safe and protect your teeth on Halloween and always.