Pamela Holmes: Why you should swish your mouth with water regularly when eating sugary treats

You might have heard that sugar is bad, sugar causes tooth decay, don’t eat sugar!

Well, I’m here to tell you you can enjoy your treats this holiday season and not worry about tooth decay.

This is why . . .

Tooth decay occurs when the bacteria — what we brush off — feed off the food substrate that’s in our mouth.

Its by-product is plaque — the furry stuff we brush off.

This plaque is acidic and demineralises our tooth enamel — weakens it — so decay actually happens when sugars and acids are left on our teeth for long periods of time.

It’s the frequency with which we consume sugar that causes the problem.

You can reduce your risk of cavities by not snacking on sugary treats over long periods, and swishing your mouth with water throughout the day and between foods.

For example, if you sit down to watch a movie with a bag of lollies, you will sustain more damage if you suck and chew constantly throughout the movie — constantly covering your teeth with sugar for the whole two hours — than if you eat some treats every few minutes and swish your mouth with water afterwards.

As the snack is not on your teeth for long periods, it doesn’t have time to cause as much destruction.

The same goes for soft drinks.

Have a sip of your soft drink and then a sip of water and swish it around.

Drinking through a straw also helps limit the time the substance is sitting on your teeth.

For young children and juice in a bottle or sippy cup, constant sucking and sipping can cause problems.

Don’t let your child walk around this holiday season drinking juice all day from their bottle.

Have your treats and swish with water — that’s the tip I’d love you to take on board.

So, enjoy indulging guilt-free with family and friends, make those memories, and tell your loved ones the value of swishing with water regularly.

Pamela Holmes is a dental therapist based in Albany, specialising in children’s oral hygiene.