4 Dental Tips For Your Thanksgiving Festivities
Thanksgiving in Lindale Texas, it’s an amazing time. The weather is cooling off and it’s a day full of friendship, family, football, and remembering all you have to be thankful for.
We are sure you spent so much time preparing for Thanksgiving’s great feast, but are you thinking about the effects that feast could have on your oral health?
Most people don’t. They are more concerned about the effects that the feasting could have on their waist-lines, but Thanksgiving can in fact make a huge impact on your teeth.
So what can you do to make sure that your teeth stay healthy and look great after the holiday season? We’ve got some great dental tips for you to practice, while still enjoying all that the holidays have to offer.
Dental Tip #1- Shorten Your Meal Times
During the holiday season, there tends to be a lot of snacking throughout the day. Whether you are just snacking on appetizers, or frequenting different homes for different meals. However, this frequent eating isn’t good for your smile.
Frequent snacking will continually expose your teeth to acids from the foods that you eat. This increases your risk of developing tooth decay.
To lower your risk try to stick to specific meal times during the day. Or another option is to bring a travel sized toothbrush along with you to brush between snacking or meals to help clean your teeth. Try brushing your teeth 30 minutes after eating.
Dental Tip #2- Stick to Water
There are so many drink options usually available around the holidays and most of them aren’t healthy for your body at all, let alone your teeth. Between adult beverages and sugary sodas, the best option for you to stick to is always going to be water.
Water not only hydrates your body but it also helps with the production of saliva in your mouth. Water also helps wash any leftover food that you may have remaining in your teeth after your meal. So, if you have neglected to bring along a toothbrush with you, drinking water can help rid your mouth of bacteria, reduce the chance of cavities, and improve your overall oral health.
The common alternates around Thanksgiving like wine are very acidic. The acid in wine can soften the enamel on your teeth allowing it to be vulnerable to decay. You want to avoid acidic food and drink like this whenever possible.
Dental Tip #3- Try Teeth Healthy Foods
We all want to do what’s best for our bodies and eat healthy foods, but at Thanksgiving that all seems to go out the door! However, there are some great Thanksgiving foods you can partake in that are still good for your teeth.
Such as:
- Turkey- It contains phosphorus which when mixed with calcium and vitamin D strengthens teeth and bones
- Sweet Potatoes- Contain Vitamin A, C, and B6 (But cut out the sticky marshmallows)
- Carrots- Keratin and Vitamin A that strengthen tooth enamel
- Snap peas- Vitamin C
- Brussel sprouts- Calcium and Vitamin C
- Cheese– Contains calcium
And avoiding a lot of starches can help aid this as well. Starches can feed acid-producing bacteria just like simple sugars can. Starches convert to sugar, which feed those nasty bacteria that live in your mouth, possibly leading to tooth decay. So, those amazing mashed potatoes and those famous casseroles can be just as much of a culprit as those delicious apple pies.
But sticking to a good balance of these teeth healthy foods will help you keep your smile healthy and beautiful all holiday season long.
Dental Tip #4- Schedule Your Post-Holiday Checkup
Once you have made it through your holiday gatherings, it is always a good idea to come into your local Lindale dentist for a post-holiday dental checkup.
Even those who are always on top of their oral health can become a little more relaxed on their brushing and flossing routines over the holiday season. We can get your teeth back into great shape before the new year.
And if you had dental issues before the holiday, they may have become worse after the festivities. You never want to let a dental issue linger, it may become painful and require a more complex dental procedure in the long run.
No matter your dental situation, we are here to help you with your dental needs. Call us to schedule your post-holiday dental checkup today (903) 231-6605.