As soon as you start weaning your child, do not encourage a sweet tooth.
- Don’t add sugar to foods and drinks
- Never dip a dummy in anything sweet
- Never put sugary drinks in feeding bottles or infant cups
Every time you eat or drink something containing sugar, plaque bacteria on your teeth make acid which attacks the tooth surface. After a while, a hole or cavity forms. This is called tooth decay. To stop tooth decay:
- Cut down on both the amount of sugar you eat, and how often you eat it.
- Don’t have any sugar between meals as this gives teeth time to recover from the acid attack.
- Don’t have sugary snacks – try healthier options like:
Vegetable Sticks
Cheese and Crackers
Fresh Fruit
Pitta Bread and Hummous
Bread
ToastMilk and water are the only safe drinks for young children.
Fruit juices contain natural sugar (fructose) and should only be offered at mealtimes.
Diet drinks contain artificial sweeteners which do not cause decay but are acidic which dissolve the surface, causing dental erosion.
Always ask for sugar free medicines
For more information on healthy eating for children go to: Every Child
StopSugar in cakes, biscuits, sweets, chocolate, jam, preserves, fizzy drinks, squash, milk shakes
Be Aware
Fruit Juice: the natural sugars can cause tooth decay. Fruit juices are important in providing vitamin C and reaching our 5-a- day, but drink at mealtimes only.
Dried Fruit: can cause tooth decay. The natural sugar has been released from the fruit cell as part of the drying process, so eat at mealtimes only.
Go
Whole fruits and vegetables are a very important part of a healthy diet. They do contain natural sugars but are in a safer form within the fruit cell.
Milk is a very important part of a healthy diet. It contains natural sugar but a safer type.
Some snacks can contain more sugar than you realise. Here are some examples of popular snacks that contain large amounts of sugar which can be harmful to teeth.
