Parental dental tips

Children and adults alike enjoy snacking on gummy candies. They are easy to chew and full of flavour. Unfortunately, gummy candies are also your teeth's worst enemy. If you often snack on gummy candies, be aware that gummy candies can increase your risk of tooth decay.

Gummy candies are one of the worst sweet treats when it comes to tooth decay. When you chew gummy candies, you set off a chain of reactions that turn your mouth into the perfect environment for harmful strains of oral bacteria like streptococcus mutans.

Gummy candies stick to the surface of your teeth

Jelly or gummy candies are made of gelatine, a very sticky substance that adheres to the surface of your teeth easily. This means that unlike healthier foods like broccoli or carrots, small pieces of gummy candy remain stuck to your teeth long after you have finished snacking. The longer food remains on the surface of your teeth, the easier it becomes for oral bacteria to feast on it.

It is the stickiness and sweetness of gummy candies combined that makes them the perfect snack for tooth decay-causing bacteria.

Harmful strains of bacteria thrive when you eat sugary foods

When you consume sweet foods, the harmful strains of oral bacteria in your mouth flourish and multiply. This is because bad oral bacteria prefer to feast on sugar. And since just a handful of gummy bears contain over 17 grams of sugar, tooth decay-causing bacteria love gummy bears even more than you do.

The natural process of bad oral bacteria is to consume the sugars you eat and then produce harmful acid. This acid is powerful enough to eat away the enamel coating on your teeth. The more sugar in your mouth, the more food there is for oral bacteria, which causes their population to increase dramatically. Unfortunately, this also means that there will be more acid to damage your tooth enamel.

Gummy candies also contain citric acid

When you snack on gummy candies regularly, you aren't just exposed to the acid from oral bacteria. Gummy candies contain citric acid, which, like the acid produced by oral bacteria, dissolves tooth enamel. So when you eat a bag of gummy candies, your saliva becomes acidic. And because gummy candies stick to your teeth, your teeth bathe in a pool of harmful acids. This leads to tooth decay.

If you enjoy gummy candies regularly, your risk of tooth decay increases. Drink water while eating gummy candies to wash the sticky residue from your teeth. And ensure that you go for regular dental check-ups to stop cavities from ruining your teeth. 

In dire circumstances, you can always visit an emergency dentist.