Healthy Lunch Ideas to Protect your Child’s Teeth

Bloomsburg, Danville, and Lewisburg, PA

If you are a parent, you probably know all about the importance of good nutrition. While breakfast is said to be the most important meal of the day and dinner is a daily task for households with children, make sure to not neglect lunch in your meal planning. Whether you pack a lunch for your child or they eat their meal from their school’s cafeteria, encourage healthy eating habits to protect their teeth.

Consider these lunchtime foods to keep your children well fed at school and their oral health well protected.

• Sandwiches: Make them with whole-grain bread. For the source of protein, put aside the peanut butter and consider something like chicken or turkey that will help build the enamel on your child’s teeth.
• Fruits and vegetables: Crunchy, raw produce like apples, celery, and carrots serve as a natural way to clean teeth. Chewing these foods stimulates the production of saliva, which reduces the bad bacteria in the mouth. Looking to increase your child’s consumption of vitamins? Consider a banana; it’s loaded with vitamins and also contains plenty of potassium. Watermelon slices can be a great source of Vitamin C, which helps maintain healthy gums. Oranges also are great for Vitamin C and help manage the acidity levels in the mouth. Finally, did you know that strawberries serve as a natural way to whiten teeth?
• Go nuts: An increasing number of nutrition experts consider nuts, and seeds, to be two of the healthiest sources of protein that are available. Nuts also provide Vitamin D, calcium, fiber, folic acid and serve as a great way to get healthy fats into the diet, which can help you stay fuller, longer.
• Stay hydrated: Water remains the best beverage choice for your children, who, depending on their age, should be drinking five to 10 glasses of water on a daily basis. Water also encourages saliva production, which rinses away harmful bacteria in the mouth. Water also rehydrates the body for overall wellness.

Choose foods with a high quantity of calcium, including yogurt, low-fat milk, and string cheese. Eating a diet rich in calcium keeps your teeth and jawbone strong while providing an additional defense against tooth decay. If you are looking for good sources of both calcium and protein, we recommend tuna fish or hard-boiled eggs.

Pediatric Dentistry in Bloomsburg

At Hamilton Dental Care, we believe the most important aspect of pediatric dentistry is a strong regimen of preventive care, which involves identifying and stopping oral health problems before they become serious issues.

One of the greatest threats to a child’s oral health is tooth decay, which is the most widespread chronic disease currently affecting Americans under the age of 18. Each year, an estimated 51 million school hours are lost due to dental-related illnesses. Help protect your child’s oral health by encouraging them to make healthy food choices during the school day, and at home. To learn more about the pediatric dental program at Hamilton Dental Care, please call our office at (570) 387-0533 to schedule a consultation.

Hamilton Dental Care serves patients in the areas of Bloomsburg, Danville, and Lewisburg in Pennsylvania.