What Are the Effects of Sour Candy on Your Oral Health?

For a couple of decades now, candies marketed to children have increasingly been of two varieties: fruity or sour. Sour candies are very popular, but the acidic levels in them have led to increased cases of worn out teeth. If you happen to love sour candy, understand the effects it could have on your teeth and how you can reduce them.

Signs Sour Candy Is Impacting Your Oral Health

There are a number of signs that will manifest on your teeth to indicate that the sour candies are indeed impacting your dental health in a negative way. These signs include:

  • Teeth sensitivity: The tooth enamel wears away, causing a twinge of pain when consuming cold, hot or sweet drinks and foods.
  • Teeth discoloration: The color of the tooth surface may turn from white to slight yellow.
  • Teeth transparency: You will notice some transparency on your front teeth along the biting edges.
  • Teeth rounding: This occurs along the edges and surfaces of the teeth.
  • Tooth decay: The protective outermost layer of the enamel is lost.
  • Dents: They occur on the chewing surfaces of the teeth.

How to Reduce the Negative Effects of Sour Candy

If you have started to experience any of the above mentioned signs, there are a number of ways in which you can prevent further damage. They include:

  1. If you can't stop eating sour candy, then try as much as possible to consume it in moderation. Over consumption of candy prolongs the time in which your teeth are exposed to acid, thus accelerating the damage.
  2. Go for hard candies instead of those that are sticky and gooey. If you eat candy that sticks to your teeth, not only will the enamel of your teeth be eroded, but the color will change too. You can at least suck on hard candies.
  3. When choosing flavors, stay away from cherry and lemon as they might be more damaging compared to other flavors.
  4. Brushing immediately after consuming sour candy is highly discouraged. You should let the enamel re-harden first, which may take 20 minutes to an hour, after which you can brush with a soft toothbrush.

Sour candy may be quite appealing to the eye and pleasing to the nose but very hazardous to the mouth. As a candy lover, you are highly advised to brush your teeth at least thrice per day to ensure that the acidic levels on your mouth are kept on the lower side. You should also consider visiting a clinic such as Panther Hollow Dental Lodge every year for dental cleanups and checkups. This will ensure that your oral health is at its best at all times. 


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