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Now that the holidays have come and gone, you can sit down and take stock of your kid’s health. That means scheduling doctor’s appointment with the family pediatrician and a trip to your Dentist in Magnificent Mile Downtown in Chicago.

Chances are you didn’t see everything your kids ate over the holidays. Aunt Sally and Uncle John didn’t waste any time passing out the homemade fudge and your best friend Jennifer couldn’t wait to share her award winning petit fours. Little hands were probably the first to snatch up the goodies that only come around once a year. However, it’s more than tummy aches that your kids will have to deal with. Over the next few weeks those cakes, cookies, pies and will have built up on your kids teeth making it harder to brush and floss. Schedule an appointment with. It’s bad enough when adults get peanut brittle stuck in their teeth, but it’s even worse for kids.

Go online or pick up the phone and schedule a check up for your kids. Your 12-year-old son may think his teeth are perfectly fine but if it’s been about 6 months since the last checkup, it’s time to call your Kids Dentist in Chicago.

Tooth decay can strike at any time, but especially after holidays like Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter, and Halloween. Even if your tried to give your kids healthy treats by making everything yourself, those caramel apples that you made for Halloween and the pecan fudge that you surprised everyone with for Christmas is still loaded with sugar.

This year start the year off right with a New Year’s resolution list that includes dental appointments for the whole family starting with Chicago Kids. Those healthy oral hygiene habits that you show your kids now, will definitely pay off in the future.

Don’t let another month go by without scheduling an appointment with the Best Kids Dentist in downtown Chicago Kids Dentist.

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year, but it can also be the most dangerous when it comes to your kids teeth. Most folks over-indulge from November to the end of December making promises to the mirror that it will be diet time come January, but your kids teeth are an entirely different story.

Cookies, candies, cakes, gingerbread, candy canes, peanut brittle, and all of those sweet treats could mean that you will be spending most of January with your Chicago 60611 Kids Dentist, but it does not have to be that way.

Even if you do try to limit the amount of sugar your children consume, it is tough during the holidays, and it can be just as difficult to monitor everything your kids put into their mouths, especially when Grandma and Aunt Susie are in town.

While sweets are fine in moderation your Magnificent Mile Kids Dentist will tell you that sugar has been linked to tooth decay, pediatric obesity, and even heart disease. Some research has indicated that it can also be a trigger for Type 2 diabetes in children. According to your Kids Dentist in Chicago, it will not take long for tooth decay to set in, and if your kid’s teeth are problematic as it is, you could be asking for trouble.

Sugar produces an over abundance of bacteria, which feeds on the sweet treats that are eaten. Those harmful acids start to form and will begin to wear down the enamel on your kids teeth. Once the enamel starts to weaken, your children will be a target for gingivitis and cavities.

Those holiday parties and family gatherings can be tough, but it is possible for you and the rest of the clan to set up some reasonable limits. If a buffet is on the menu for Christmas dinner, make sure that you show your kids what sweets are allowed and how many they can have. Include lots of fruits and veggies and tell your children that they have to eat the good stuff before they can eat any sweet treats.

Your Kids Dentist in the Magnificent Mile in Downtown Chicago also recommends that you carry a couple of travel-sized toothbrush kits in your bag and encourage your children to eat cookies, candies, cakes, and other treats along with a healthy meal. Carbs, fruits and veggies produce saliva, which helps to digest the food more quickly.

It is nearly impossible to avoid those delicious sweet treats during the holidays, but you can be ahead of the game if you schedule an appointment with the best Kids Dentist in Magnificent Mile, Chicago Kids DDS.

Gummy vitamins have become very popular in the last several years and even adults now have the option of getting essential vitamins and nutrients through a tasty gummy treat.  But while this can be a great way to get children to take their vitamins, gummy vitamins can harm your teeth.  Yes, they are enhanced with vitamins, but also often contain ingredients that can be found in traditional candy, such as glucose syrup (sugar).  Even sugar free gummies can also contain sticky gelatin and enamel eating citric acid.

Deciding whether or not to use gummy vitamins may come down to what you or your children are most likely to actually use as well as what your own dietary requirements.  If it’s difficult to encourage children to take a regular vitamin, or if you don’t like the taste yourself, then considering a gummy vitamin might not be all bad.  Simply make sure that teeth are brushed shortly after taking them so that these “almost candies” don’t sit on your teeth for long periods of time.

The first line of protection for your child’s teeth is the enamel, which is the white, visible part of the tooth.  It’s also hardest substance in the human body, and yet it takes a lot of abuse.  Enamel can crack, chip and wear away.  What steps can you take to protect your child’s enamel?

Use a soft toothbrush.  While we may be tempted to use a toothbrush with hard bristles, thinking that a stiff bristle will be better and cleaning teeth, the best choice is one that provides more gentle care.  Additionally, children often use more force than needed when brushing their teeth.  This can be damaging to sensitive gum tissue and only serves to wear down precious enamel.

Limit starchy foods.  While we all understand that certain starchy foods like potato chips and french fries aren’t always the healthiest choices, we don’t often associate these foods as being bad for teeth.  Interestingly, starch turns to sugar so quickly that it raises blood glucose levels even faster than table sugar.  The sugar produced by starchy foods feeds bacteria that act as microscopic jack-hammers on your child’s enamel.

Don’t forget the cheese.  Cheese truly is a dental powerhouse.  Dairy neutralizes acid, contains calcium and a protein called casein which acts as an enamel protector.  Cheese is a great choice for an afterschool snack.

Drink water after meals.  Drinking water shortly after eating is an excellent way to quickly wash away some of the food that lingers on and between the teeth.  Even having children simply rinse their mouths with water after meals has been shown to be an effective way to protect enamel.

Avoid “whitening” toothpastes.  Toothpaste made specifically for children if often the best choice when deciding what they should brush with.  Not only are flavors often more kid friendly, but they generally don’t carry the harsh abrasives that many whitening toothpastes have.  These abrasives can act line sandpaper by wearing down the enamel on young teeth.  Remember, any toothpaste you choose should always carry the ADA’s seal of approval.