Holiday treats are so tempting. It seems each new season is heralded by themed candy and sugary baked goods. Those comforting cookies are not just a menace to your waistline, they can wreak havoc with your oral health as well. 

Registered Dental Hygienist Katie Zahn offers professional advice about how to prevent tooth decay without missing out on Aunt Theresa’s pumpkin pie or peanut brittle.

Katie’s worked as a dental hygienist for the past five years. She said the one change that would most greatly impact oral health would be to reduce the amount of snacking. 

Continually grazing on holiday treats and drinks creates an environment ripe for plaque biofilm to form — the perfect food source and hiding place for microorganisms present in the mouth. The microorganisms (bacteria) create acid that attacks the teeth, seeking to exploit any damage or weak spot to begin a cavity. Did you know it takes 20 minutes after the LAST bite for the pH level in the mouth to return to normal?

Carbohydrates and items with sucrose sugars — like holiday favorite pecan pie or Christmas cookies, even the starch in mashed potatoes or sweet potato casserole — while tasty, also provide a feast for the microorganisms, Katie said. Even worse are sticky and/or sour candies made of pectin or gelatin that adhere to the teeth. Surprisingly, chocolate is a better choice, as its chemistry is less acidic. 

Katie suggests cutting sucrose in baked goods by incorporating a plant-based sugar substitute like Xylitol. This ingredient helps reduce plaque biofilm because Xylitol is an “unpreferred sugar source that cavity-causing bacteria cannot digest,” Katie said. A few caveats – Xylitol is toxic to pets, and too much of it can cause digestive issues in humans, she cautioned. 

Katie recommends limiting snacks and sugary drinks as well as brushing and flossing after every meal to avoid plaque buildup between teeth or along the gumline. Timing and duration are the watchwords – stop grazing and brush for at least two minutes after each meal. 

The professionals at 7to7 Dental & Orthodontics care about your oral health and are available 7 a.m.- 7 p.m., seven days a week, for emergencies and dentistry for the whole family. 7to7 Dental is a local business grown in 13 years from the practice of one dentist and six staff, which now employs 240 San Antonio community members. Co-Owners Tiffany Winburn, D.M.D., and Justin Coke live in Stone Oak with their families and are part of the community.