Submitted by Pediatric Smiles of Bloomington
Most parents struggle with making sure that their children are eating a balanced, nutritious diet. We know it’s important for their overall health and development, and we often go to great lengths to sneak in veggies, limit snacks, and resist the ever-present temptation of unhealthy foods. One aspect of healthy eating that we often don’t think about is the effect of food choices in preventing tooth decay. In particular, there are many foods that are quite healthy — or seem to be healthy — yet are horrible for our teeth.
Why? The answer is simple: sugar. Bacteria in the mouth use sugar to grow, multiply, and produce acids. The acids then begin to eat away at the tooth’s enamel (the hard outer surface) and cause the teeth to be susceptible to decay. We know to avoid and limit the obvious sugary snacks, sugary drinks, and candy. Sugar can be very sneaky, so we often aren’t even aware that it is lurking in most of the food we eat — including those that are promoted as being healthy.
Some of the most common names for sugar are: evaporated cane juice, agave nectar, fruit juice concentrate, high-fructose corn syrup, molasses, honey, and any word ending in “ose” — glucose, sucrose, fructose, maltose, and dextrose. Don’t be fooled — these are all sugar and are all detrimental to your oral health.
Following are some other healthy or healthy-sounding foods that are particularly damaging to our teeth.
- Dried fruit. While dried fruit, including raisins, are a healthful snack, they are also very sticky, and sticky foods are your teeth’s worst nightmare. Such foods are very damaging because they stay on the teeth and can be difficult to rinse away. Whole fruit is high in natural sugar, but also contains fiber and water that mitigates the impact on tooth decay. When you remove the water, what’s left is concentrated sugar. So, it’s like soaking your teeth in a sugar bath — far worse than just eating a piece of chocolate.
- Trail mix. Just the name sounds so outdoorsy and healthy, but most trail mixes contain dried fruit, along with a plethora of unhealthy ingredients including added sugar. Look for trail mix that has mostly nuts without added sugar and fat.
- Granola and granola bars. This is another food where just the name fools us into thinking it is healthy. Many brands are nothing more than healthy-sounding sugar bombs.
- Fruit snacks. Slick marketing and deceptive packaging has misled the public into thinking that fruit snacks are healthy. Nothing could be further from the truth as they are nothing more than sugar. As an example, the main ingredients in Annie’s Organic Bunny Patch Fruit Snacks are: organic tapioca syrup, organic cane sugar, organic tapioca syrup solids, and organic white grape juice. The wording, “made with goodness” is slapped on the front of the box.
- Smoothies. These can be a fantastic snack as you also get the mouth-healthy benefits of milk or yogurt. It’s important to know what the ingredients are in smoothies that you purchase. If you make your own, use real fruit and yogurt or milk; don’t add extra sugar.
- “Vitamin” water. Many drinks are nothing more than liquid sugar. This includes “vitamin water,” sports drinks, and juice. Plain water or milk are safer alternatives.
We aren’t trying to be the snack police, but rather encouraging parents to be label detectives. Try to promote a mouth-healthy diet by offering cheese, raw veggies, nuts, or fruit for snacks. There is no need to forbid all sugary foods, but be aware of the sugar content in healthy sounding foods and treat them like you do cookies, candies, or other types of dessert. As long as you limit the amount and frequency of sugary foods, rinse with water after eating, brush twice a day, and see your dentist every six months to treat small problems before they become big ones, you and your children will have a lifetime of happy, healthy smiles.
Pediatric Smiles of Bloomington is a specialized dental office for children 0 to 18 and special-needs patients. They are located at 1112 Trinity Ln. in Bloomington and may be reached at 309-663-7339. Ask about their “No-Cavity Club” and the rewards kids may earn.