Thanksgiving Can Be Traditional AND More Tooth Friendly

Thanksgiving dinner -- that time of the year where family and/or friends all get together to share good food and good drink and gratitude for the blessings in our lives -- is a time that can be a little tough on our teeth.

There are more likely to be multiple desserts offered. And, even some of the 'traditional' side dishes use large amounts of sugar along with the spice to create special holiday recipes.

The funny thing about it is, that at the original Thanksgiving meal of the Pilgrims, they did not have any desserts at all. By that autumn of 1691, all of the Mayflower’s sugar supply was almost gone.

As a matter of fact, the only available sweetener they had at all, was maple sap. They only had that because the native Squanto had taught them to extract from the trees of the area in March of that year.

  So how can we be traditional and more tooth friendly this Thanksgiving?

•  Take a leaf from the early settlers. Use less sweeteners in side dishes and desserts. Most of the time, you can reduce sugar significantly without people noticing. Maybe it would make a great NEW family tradition to all get together and experiment reducing or replacing sugar on 1 family recipe a year?

• Make sure you showcase the tooth friendly traditional foods like sweet potatoes and cranberries. Sweet potatoes are filled with antioxidants to boost immunity. Cranberries keep cavity-forming bacteria from sticking to your teeth.

• Berry Pies are another good choice. Blueberries, cherries, blackberries, and black raspberries are as beneficial as cranberries. Rich in Vitamins A and K, manganese (an essential mineral) and may even contain compounds that help lower bad cholesterol.

• Play up the fiber foods. Fiber foods can actually scrub your teeth as you eat. They also promote saliva flow-- important to help neutralize the acids (especially those caused by sugar!) and enzymes attacking tooth enamel. Some good fiber foods for a family pre-feast or feat are broccoli, artichokes, raw carrots, avacados, asparagus and apples.

What about after the meal?

SURPRISE!

It is important that you have your kids just rinse with water after the meal-- NOT BRUSH.

Thanksgiving dinner has a lot of acid causing foods. And acids in foods and beverages soften enamel during and after eating for at least 30 minutes and up to an hour!

This leaves  teeth more vulnerable to damage when brushed with toothpaste. So regularly brushing right after eating can make your kids (and your) teeth become sensitive over time.

It IS important that they brush and floss today between meals -- just make sure it is after the 60 minute mark.

Here is wishing all of you and your families a delightful, satisfying and tooth friendlier Thanksgiving!

Smiles

Dr Karen Chu


PLEASE SHARE THIS ARTICLE! 
 

I'm reading: Thanksgiving Can Be Traditional AND More Tooth Friendly