On the 12th day of Christmas, Crook Log Dental Practice gave me 12 dental Christmas tips to keep my teeth and gums healthy and bright over the festive period!
Christmas is a magical time of the year and we want all of our wonderful patients of Bexleyheath and Crook Log to enjoy the festive season, but with Christmas, also comes sweet treats, fizzy and acidic festive drinks, and lots of snacking,
We hope our top 12 dental Christmas will help to keep your teeth and gums healthy this festive season!
We’ve all been guilty of doing this but please don’t use your teeth as a tool this season. In the excitement of the festivities, many patients rip open presents, tear off labels and cut tape with their teeth, resulting in chipped enamel, fillings, and broken crowns and bridges.
We often see a lot of dental emergencies over the Christmas period for this very reason.
Never open a bottle with your teeth! As lovely as it is to see our patients, please reach for the bottle opener, and save yourself a trip to Crook Log Dental Practice this December.
Brushing your teeth immediately after eating and drinking can affect your tooth enamel in the long term. Food and drinks containing citric acids, like oranges, lemons, as well as acidic champagne and prosecco, can be bad for your teeth. These acidic festive drinks weaken tooth enamel, and brushing too soon after consuming can remove the enamel.
To be safe, our Bexleyheath dentists suggest that if you feel like you need to brush your teeth after eating or drinking, wait at least 30-60 minutes. This gives your saliva a chance to naturally wash away food particles, so your mouth returns to its proper pH level. It’s best to stick to drinking water or chew sugarless gum while waiting for this to happen.
3) Choose toys instead of treatsThe shelves of the supermarkets and shops in Bexleyheath’s Broadway and Kent are packed full of chocolates and sweet Christmas treats, and it is very tempting to spoil children with these affordable and easy-to-grab presents. Choose a puzzle, book or toy for them to enjoy instead. Plus, it will last longer.
Rather than giving your little ones an advent calendar filled with sugary treats, swap it for a Christmas day countdown full of fun family games, jokes, or puzzle activities.
Christmas is also about spending time together and creating wonderful memories and this can often be over looked by the novelty of gift giving. Time after all is our greatest gift of all.
Chocolate is by far the best sweet treat for teeth. Chocolate easily washes off the teeth, meaning it doesn’t stick around to cause cavities or other types of tooth damage. The best kind of chocolate for your dental health is dark chocolate because it contains less sugar.
Sugar-free candy is the second-best treat for teeth. Sugar stimulates bacteria growth in the mouth, so avoiding excessive sugar is ideal to prevent tooth decay and maintain healthy teeth. Sugar-free sweets stimulate saliva production, which has a positive effect on your dental health because it washes the mouth of bacteria and plaque that cause tooth problems.
When sweets stick to your teeth, cavities are more likely to develop. Having nuts in sweets and chocolate breaks up that stickiness, thus decreasing the chance of cavities forming. The crunch of the nuts can also help to break up some of the plaque on your teeth. Additionally, nuts contain protein and fibre, which are great for your overall health.
Regularly drinking water throughout the day helps to rinse food particles and bacteria from your mouth and reduce the risk of tooth decay.
Choosing still tap or bottled water rather than fizzy drinks, fruit juices and alcoholic beverages over the festive period will help to lower your overall sugar intake.
All Alcoholic drinks contain some sugar. Alcoholic drinks account for 10% of 29 to 64-year-olds in the UK’s daily intake of added sugar, and 6% for over 65s. This increases over the Christmas period as we tend to socialise and drink more.
Many patients forget to factor in what they drink when calculating their daily sugar intake. Fortified wines, sherries, liqueurs, and cider are particular causes of excessive consumption.
It’s also important to consider what you’re mixing your drinks with, as carbonated drinks popular with spirits, are often very high in sugar. Choose a sugar-free or diet mixer instead.
5) Chew some cheeseCharcuterie boards , grazing tables and cheese trays are a UK holiday favourite and we couldn’t agree more. Cheese makes a great snack to enjoy during the holidays, especially if you are also sipping on an alcoholic or highly acidic drink.
Cheese has pH-balancing properties that help neutralize acids and it’s full of calcium.
Crackers, bread sticks, and olives are also great cheese companions as their sugar content is very low. Happy Cheese-mas!
6) Beware of the buffetOver the holidays, we often have spreads of food left out for us to constantly tuck in. Grazing and snacking all day can put your teeth at greater risk for decay. Instead of leaving out food to graze on, only put out food at mealtimes and enjoy your treat after a lunch or dinner, instead of between meals.
Traditional turkey is a great buffet selection as it’s a source of phosphorus and protein, both of which can help your body fight tooth decay and keep your teeth strong and healthy.
At parties, skip the trays of Christmas cookies and mince pies and instead fill your plate with healthy veggies.
Some fibre-rich vegetables like celery and carrots can help encourage your salivary glands to produce more saliva. In turn, bacteria and foul-smelling debris in your mouth can be washed away.
Broccoli, celery, and carrots are also a great snack because they’re loaded with Vitamin A which strengthens your enamel. Enjoy with a low sugar dip such as hummus!
Christmas parties are a mix of excitable children (and adults too!) over-excited pets and usually a living room full of crowded friends and family. A perfect environment for an accidental dental emergency!
Keep an eye on your surroundings when you are raising a glass or bottle to your mouth as an accidental knock can lead to devastating dental trauma.
Another great dental tip over Christmas is to Use a straw! A straw can prevent these accidents from happening.
Drinking through a straw also decreases the contact between your drink and your front teeth. A straw causes the liquid to flow to the back of the mouth thus avoiding contact with your front teeth.
Drinking through a straw can also help prevent tooth staining when drinking coffee, red wine, and dark fruit juices. Not very sophisticated I hear you say, but it can help prevent tooth staining and accidental knocks from a glass!
9) Don’t forget your toothbrushIf you’re going away this Christmas, don’t forget to pack your oral hygiene essentials. Your toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, mouthwash, and any current treatments you are having such as aligners, whitening trays and night guards.
We relax a little more during the holidays and often find ourselves snoozing in front of the TV after our big hearty Christmas dinners and buffets, but it’s very important to continue with our oral health regime, especially before bedtime.
If you go to bed without brushing and flossing, that means your teeth are covered in bacteria. The bacteria will digest the foods that you have been eating all day, and then produce acid as a result of their digestion. The acid is what attacks your enamel and can lead to cavities.
Whilst you sleep your body doesn’t make as much saliva and your mouth becomes dry. This will put you at a higher risk of cavities if you go to bed without brushing.
To give your teeth a head start for the new year, why not book a pre-Christmas scale and polish? Find out more by clicking this link https://www.crooklogdentalpractice.co.uk/treatment/dental-hygiene/
Ready for some more dental tips over Christmas? Hard sweets and nuts are tasty and readily available during the holidays, but they can crack your teeth if you bite down wrong.
It may be better to let sweets dissolve rather than chewing them to prevent any chipping or other damage to your teeth.
Christmas favourites such as hard-shelled chestnuts, walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, and Brazil nuts are your typical tooth enemy, so take care when crunching these treats.
11) Fill up on fruitAfter all those savoury salty snacks are you in need of a sugar fix? Instead of turning to the ever-tempting buffet of sugary treats and desserts, turn to fresh fruit instead. Fresh fruit contains natural sugars which can be less damaging to your teeth (than the pecan pie drizzled in sticky toffee!)
If you really can’t resist, try sticking to a sweet dessert only after your meal or prepare a big fruit platter to satisfy your sweet tooth, washed down with a big glass of water.
Low-sugar fruits include:
12) Make your news year’s resolution is to book an Exam and Hygiene appointment with Crook Log Dental PracticeThe Christmas holidays can throw everyone off balance but neglecting your oral hygiene routine can have serious long-term consequences. It only takes two minutes to brush thoroughly twice a day and another minute or so to floss!
Start 2024 on a positive note by making your appointments by clicking this link
https://uk.dentalhub.online/soe/new/Crook%20Log%20Dental%20Practice?pid=UKJAM03
At Crook Log Dental Practice, we recognise the importance of aesthetics as part of our commitment to producing healthier smiles for our wonderful patients of Bexleyheath, Kent. We use composite technology to replace silver fillings with a tooth-coloured composite to brighten the smile line and offer you a sparkling, healthy smile.
Our practice is open throughout the holidays except Christmas day and boxing day. If you have a dental emergency over the festive period outside of Crook Log Dental Practice’s working hours, please call 01634 890300 or visit their website at DentaLine Information – KLDC
Booking has never been easier! Call our team on 020 8303 3838 or book online via https://uk.dentalhub.online/soe/new/Crook%20Log%20Dental%20Practice?pid=UKJAM03
Register with Denplan, Simply health, to enjoy the benefits and discounts most of our patients are benefiting from, call our team to find out more.
From all of the team at Crook Log Dental Practice, we wish you a very merry Christmas and a prosperous new year!
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