Valentine’s Day is a fun holiday filled with flowers, gifts, and cards, but it can also wreak havoc on your little one’s teeth. With so many sugary treats around, it’s all too easy for your child to develop a mouth full of cavities and toothaches. Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to keep their precious smiles healthy while still enjoying the February festivities! Read on to learn more about how to love your little one’s smile this Valentine’s Day.
The Worst Valentine’s Day Candy for Teeth
Unfortunately, many popular Valentine’s Day treats are a bad choice for your child’s teeth, including:
- Hard candies and lollipops: These types of sweets are trouble in two ways. Firstly, chewing on hard candies weakens enamel, which leaves teeth more vulnerable to breaking. Secondly, sucking on hard candies coats the teeth with sticky, sugary residue that encourages tooth decay.
- Candies with sticky fillings: Sugars left behind by sticky candies will cling to your child’s teeth in hard-to-clean spaces. What’s more, sticky candies can tug on or dislodge dental work like fillings!
- Sour candies: Not only are sour candies brimming with sugar, but they also contain a lot of acid. This allows them to burn through enamel and cause damage much faster than many other types of candies!
Smile-Friendly Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas
Since so many traditional Valentine’s Day gifts can hurt your child’s oral health, you may feel at a loss for what to give them. Thankfully, there are lots of fun presents you can give your child to make them smile while protecting their pearly whites, like:
- Smile-friendly treats: Soft chocolate, frozen yogurt, and chocolate covered strawberries are tasty treats that won’t harm your child’s teeth. Just be sure to indulge in moderation!
- Small toys: Bubbles, heart-shaped straws, Play Doh, crayons, bouncy balls, and plenty of other little gifts can be given with Valentine’s Day-themed puns or messages.
- Arts and crafts: Making Valentine’s Day crafts can be just as fun as receiving them, so try making with your child a heart shape from melted crayons, a hand-made card, or painting a rock along with the words “You rock Valentine!”
Teaching Your Child to Love Their Smile
While great oral hygiene is always important for your child’s health, it’s especially so during Valentine’s Day! Take some time to make sure your little one is properly caring for their smile. Remember, they should be brushing with fluoridated toothpaste for two minutes twice a day and flossing between all their teeth daily. Teaching them to love and take care of their smile now will help set them up for a lifetime of great oral health!
About the Practice
At Simply Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics, we are passionate about caring for the young smiles of Nashua, Pelham, and the surrounding communities. Our team of experts is proud to offer friendly, personalized dental care in a state-of-the-art practice that’s been designed with growing smiles in mind. We love to teach children about the importance of their oral health and parents the best ways to care for their little ones’ precious smiles at home. To learn more, we can be contacted online or at (603) 635-1166.