In the Know for You To Know

Halloween is here!

It’s the time of year when children enjoy dressing up in their favorite costume, going out trick-or-treating and trying to see how much candy and treats they can collect from friends and neighbors.

Every where you look there’s chocolates and sugary treats ready to tempt our eager trick or treaters.

So, how do you keep treats reasonable while enjoying your family’s fun Halloween trick-or treating?

I’ve put together our top picks for tooth friendly treats your child will love this Halloween. You can even make them together.

5 Hauntingly Good Halloween Treats

Is this your annual Halloween monster mash or a gathering of your ghosts and goblins? No Halloween bash is complete without some scary snacks.

Chocolate Dipped Orange Pumpkins

Peel mandarin oranges and separate the individual wedges. Dip the orange wedges into melted chocolate, place on a parchment lined sheet pan and chill in the refrigerator until firm. A bite sized black and orange treat that’s right for the season.

Mummy Pizza

Whether you choose pizza dough, english muffins, pita, or a tortilla as your base, cover with your favorite tomato sauce and criss-cross slices of mozzarella cheese (or your child’s favorite cheese). Slice green or black olives to make the eyes. Bake until fully cooked.

Apple Monster Mouth

Between 2 slices of apple spread your favorite nut butter. Place a slice of strawberry, peach, or red plum onto of the nut butter to create the “tongue”. For the teeth place almond slices into the nut butter. Apples are great for stimulating saliva production, which naturally cleanse the teeth, making them an ideal choice for a healthy Halloween snack.

Jack-O-Lantern Peppers with Witch Dip and Vegetable Broomsticks

Remove the stem and seeds from a bell pepper. Make cut outs in the pepper for the eyes, nose and mouth. Fill one pepper with your family favorite dip or dressing. Fill another pepper with pepper slices, carrot sticks, broccoli pieces, cucumber slices, carrot sticks or pretzels. Veggies aren’t only tasty and crunchy. They naturally clean teeth by stimulating saliva production. A great choice for a Halloween snack.

Witches Broomsticks

Witches Broomsticks are fun, yummy and festive. Choose 2 of your family’s favorite cheese sticks. Cut each cheese stick to resemble the bristles of a broom. Place two cheese sticks around a pretzel stick or pretzel rod and tie together with a chive or use a vegetable peeler to create thin carrot ribbons to tie the broom together. Cheese is healthy for teeth and can help prevent cavities.

5 TOOTH FRIENDLY TIPS FOR A HAPPY HALLOWEEN

1. When you get home from trick or treating sit down at the table with your child and sort and check treats as you go through their treat bag with them. Help your child pick the healthiest choices. Allow them to eat these choices within a specific period of time in the kitchen rather than continually snacking throughout the day. Remember to keep candy out of their bedroom.
2. Water is your friend. Drink water to help wash away any gooey chewy candy that’s stuck in their teeth. Water is really good for you and your teeth.
3. Sticky and hard candies stay in their mouths for a long time. When choosing candy, less sticky and less sour goodies like pretzels, sugar free gum and chocolate are always a good choice. Chocolate without any mix-ins is great because it slides off and there’s nothing to get stuck in their teeth.
4. Brush the candy away. After trick or treating it’s important to make sure to floss and brush your child’s teeth. It takes 2 minutes of brushing to clean away all the candy and flossing to remove what has gotten in between their teeth. Keeping up with your flossing and brushing routine is important every day and reinforces consistency.
5. Don’t allow the Halloween candy stash to be a substitute for healthy snacks. Cheese, yogurt, peanut butter, celery, carrot sticks, apple slices are great choices.

Create Great Memories

Halloween is every child’s dream. It’s the season of costumes and candy and candy and more candy. With all the joy trick-or treating brings, we don’t want to crush their excitement.

So be the cool parent and the Halloween Hero because a healthy Halloween doesn’t mean dull and boring. Being creative with snacks and staying committed to your child’s oral hygiene routine allows you both to have fun!

Does your family like to trick or do you like the treats? Are you doing a family costume theme or does everyone choose their own? What are your children’s all time must have no way it will ever change favorite Halloween treat? Where does your child like to keep their candy stash? Share with us your Halloween treat ideas and experiences! Tell us, We’d really like to know! Email us at kidstoothhotline@proton.me Like Us on Facebook

More tips? We have lots. We’re here just for kids!