Q:
What is a healthy diet for my child?
A:
A healthy diet is a balanced diet that naturally supplies all
the nutrients your child needs to grow. And what's a balanced
diet? One that includes the following major food groups every
day: Fruits and Vegetables; Breads and Cereals; Milk and Dairy
Products; Meat, Fish and Eggs.
Q:
How does my child's diet affect her dental health?
A:
She must have a balanced diet for her teeth to develop properly.
She also needs a balanced diet for healthy gum tissue around the
teeth. Equally important, a diet high in certain kinds of carbohydrates,
such as sugar and starches, may place your child at extra risk
of tooth decay.
Q:
How do I make my child's diet safe for his teeth?
A:
First, be sure he has a balanced diet. Then, check how frequently
he eats foods with sugar or starch in them. Foods with starch
include breads, crackers, pasta and such snacks as pretzels and
potato chips. When checking for sugar, look beyond the sugar bowl
and candy dish. A variety of foods contain one or more types of
sugar, and all types of sugars can promote dental decay. Fruits,
a few vegetables and most milk products have at least one type
of sugar.
Sugar can be found in many processed foods, even some that do
not taste sweet. For example, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich
not only has sugar in the jelly, but may have sugar added to the
peanut butter. Sugar is also added to such condiments as catsup
and salad dressings.
Q:
Should my child give up all foods with sugar or starch?
A:
Certainly not! Many provide nutrients your child needs. You simply
need to select and serve them wisely. A food with sugar or starch
is safer for teeth if it's eaten with a meal, not as a snack.
Sticky foods, such as dried fruit or toffee, are not easily washed
away from the teeth by saliva, water or milk. So, they have more
cavity-causing potential than foods more rapidly cleared from
the teeth. Talk to your pediatric dentist about selecting and
serving foods that protect your child's dental health.
Q:
Does a balanced diet assure that my child is getting enough fluoride?
A: No. A balanced diet does not guarantee the proper amount of
fluoride for the development and maintenance of your child's teeth.
If you do not live in a fluoridated community or have an ideal
amount of naturally occurring fluoride in your well water, your
child needs a fluoride supplement during the years of tooth development.
Your pediatric dentist can help assess how much supplemental fluoride
your child needs, based upon the amount of fluoride in your drinking
water and your child's age and weight.
Q:
My youngest isn't on solid foods yet. Do you have suggestions
for her?
A:
Don't nurse your daughter to sleep or put her to bed with a bottle
of milk, formula, juice, or sweetened liquid. While she sleeps,
any unswallowed liquid in the mouth supports bacteria that produce
acids and attack the teeth. Protect your child from severe tooth
decay by putting her to bed with nothing more than a pacifier
or bottle of water.
Q:
Any final advice?
A:
Yes. Here are tips for your child's diet and dental health.
1.
Ask your pediatric dentist to help you assess your child's diet.
2. Shop smart! Do not routinely stock your pantry with sugary
or starchy snacks. Buy "fun foods" just for special times.
3. Limit the number of snack times; choose nutritious snacks.
4. Provide a balanced diet, and save foods with sugar or starch
for mealtimes.
5. Don't put your young child to bed with a bottle of milk,
formula, or juice.
6. If your child chews gum or sips soda, choose those without
sugar.
