What types of candy can damage fillings and other dental work

Halloween night brings fun costumes, good times, and lots of candy. This is not always a good thing, especially when your child has had dental fillings or other dental work done recently. It is very common for children to get a dental filling pulled out on halloween night or in the following weeks as they eat their candy. Certain types of candy are more likely to do this than others.

Sticky candies are the most likely candies to pull out your fillings. These candies stick to your teeth and fillings like glue. As you chew the candy it creates a sort of suction between your teeth, the candy, and your filling. This suction is what causes the fillings to be pulled out. Other soft candies can do similar things and the sugar will get inside the grooves and ridges of your teeth. In addition to these candies pulling out existing fillings they can also cause new cavities to be formed, as the sticky candy can get deep into the ridges and grooves leaving sugar. Another candy to be careful with is caramel. Caramel can also get very sticky and can pull fillings out.

Hard candies will not pull out your fillings but they can crack your teeth if you are not careful. Try to avoid biting hard candy and only suck on them. Even if your teeth are not broken from the biting, it will still be hard on your teeth.

Enjoying the occasional candy or sweet treat is great, but you need to be careful especially when it comes to breaking fillings. Making an appointment so short notice can be difficult, so doing things to avoid this can save you trouble later on. If you do run into trouble or need any emergency care do not hesitate to call us, your Spanish Fork Dentist, and we will get you an appointment as soon as possible.