Discover the best sweets to enjoy guilt-free this Halloween

Let’s face facts: sugary over-indulgence is part and parcel of enjoying Halloween, for both you and your children. But not all sweets are created equal! Different tastes and manufacturing processes means that some are far better for your teeth than others. Obviously, the wisest thing would be to try and steer clear of sugar altogether – but if you’re going to indulge, here are the best sweets to do it with!

1. Dark chocolate

For example?

Lindt, After Eight, Bournville, Green and Blacks

So what’s the secret?

It’s well known that dark chocolate is better for you than most types of other sweet treat, although not everyone will be able to tell you exactly why. In fact, chocolate as a general rule isn’t that bad for you in the grand scale of things (not compared to some other options below!). This is mainly because it washes off your teeth more easily than other types of sweets, limiting its ability to do lasting damage. So even a milk chocolate treat like Dairy Milk or a Milky Way isn’t necessarily a bad idea.

Plus, dark chocolate also contains relatively little sugar compared to other types of chocolate, and it dissolves quickly. It’s richer in calcium too – a mineral that’s actively good for your teeth – a compound found in the husk of cocoa beans can actually fight bacteria and plaque. Not too bad, in the grand scheme of things!

2. Powdery sweets

For example?

Classic sweets like Apple Bonbons, or Sherbert powder like Double Dip or Fizz Wizz

So what’s the secret?

It’s not the most obvious candidate as being ‘better for your teeth’, and obviously it’s full of sugar – but you might be surprised at how well your oral health can deal with it! The key thing is that it’s not particularly sticky, and tends to dissolve quickly, which means it can be washed away quickly by a glass of water, leaving little time for bacteria and acid to take hold on your teeth. For the same reasons, your saliva doesn’t have too much difficulty neutralising it and washing it away either.

3. Nutty sweets

For example?

Cadbury Fruit and Nut, Macadamia Nut

So, what’s the secret?

This is another interesting one. First of all, the nuts themselves are often packed with all sorts of beneficial vitamins and ingredients for your teeth. For example, almost are a great source of calcium, while peanuts contain good amounts of Vitamin D. Meanwhile, walnuts contain fibre, folic acid, iron, Vitamin E and potassium – to name just a few! These nuts help to break up the stickiness of the bars, and the broken pieces even help to scour away sugar that might stick to your teeth.

If you’re going to stock up on anything this Halloween, it’s better to stick with the sweets that’ll do the least damage to your teeth! As dental health experts here at AP Smilecare, your oral health is our top priority. That’s why we offer a number of core dentistry treatments in our Blackburn dental office, from teeth whitening to a complete smile makeover. Why not pop by, or give us a call on 01254 297 000, and see what we can do for you?