Since The Dental Maven's child has been old enough to ring a doorbell, her patients annually ask if she allows her son to go trick-or-treating and if she permits him to eat the candy.
Well of course the Maven does!
Kids love Halloween and The Dental Maven would never deny her son the pleasure of the costumes and treats.
At home the candy is sorted which serves two purposes.
1. The Dental Maven can check for anything which looks suspicious and
2. The Maven can eliminate candies which she knows are cavity producers.
To make it mutually agreeable, The Dental Maven “buys” the candy from her son which she doesn’t want him to eat. The Maven’s candy-buy-back formula is as follows: She pays a flat 20 cents per inch, the only dimension used is length (in the wrapper), width is not a factor, she will pay out to the quarter inch which makes the multiple of 20 desirable. The upshot of this is the Maven’s second grader’s comprehension of fractions and percentages has skyrocketed. So, how does The Dental Maven divide good from evil in the candy store? Here’s her line-up:
Bad:Swedish Fish
Gummy Bears
Fruit Roll-ups
NerdsGood n Plenty
Dots
Tootsie Rolls
Lesser Evils:
Hershey Chocolate Bars
Nestle Crunch
Smarties
Almond Joy
Reeses Pieces
Life Savers
M & M’s (plain and peanut)
Sugar Free Gum with Xylitol as the sweetener
You’ll notice that the common denominator in the “Bad” category is sticky and a high melting temperature. These candies remain on the teeth longer and provide long term meals for the bacteria which cause cavities. The “Lesser Evil” category includes lower melting temperature candy which melts at body temperature and gets washed away by saliva. The sweetener Xylitol doesn’t allow the cavity causing bacteria to grow, thereby decreasing cavities.
Finally, no gorging allowed, brush and floss! Flossing those back teeth on your little ones can be a challenge. Try the REACH® ACCESS™ FLOSSER especially when space is limited. Click the hyperlink for a free sample from Reach while supplies last.
Happy Halloween!
