Do the sugar swap this halloween

Christmas, Easter and Halloween can lead to big increases in sugar consumption that can be really difficult to manage. To help minimise the impact of seasonal sugar overload, we’ve included some tips shared by one of our parents that you can use to maintain great dental health for your child.

The formula goes like this:

1. Allow your child to eat the amount of chocolate, lollies and treats you think is reasonable.

Clearly, this will differ for everyone, but according to paediatric dentists, the key factor to remember is:

FREQUENCY of sugar intake does more damage than the AMOUNT.

So grazing on smaller amounts of sweet food continuously throughout a day is worse than eating a kilo of chocolate in one sitting.

Eating treats on a special occasion is fine, it’s the hoarding of the day’s spoils for weeks and weeks afterwards to be eaten daily that’s potentially harmful to your child’s dental health.

Our advice is to decrease the frequency of sugar intake and try to save your child’s sugary foods for dessert. By eating closer to their bedtime tooth brushing, there’s less time for plaque to develop.

2. Brush your child’s teeth

3. Encourage your child to collect together the remainder of the treats they would like and either throw or give them away.

4. In exchange for the sugary foods, negotiate a small toy, an experience or a trip somewhere special, and swap this for the designated teeth.

#teethmatter