When it comes to the holiday season, we put our teeth through the ringer. This year, try these 5 easy switch-ups to help keep your mouth (and your health) happy!
1. Alcohol – Champagne vs. other spirits
The holiday season is the perfect time to raise a toast. We cheer to things we’re thankful for, like good oral health! But when it comes to raising your glass this year, stick with the classic champagne. Sparkling wines tend to have the highest pH levels out of other spirit selections.
2. Hot drinks – Ginger tea vs. hot cocoa
From eggnog to hot cocoa, cooler months lead us to sipping on warm, sugary beverages (and who can blame us!?). Still, you can find liquid warmth in other, just as satisfying drinks, too. Try hot ginger tea, which is not only sugarless, but ginger is an anti-inflammatory and can help support healthy mouth tissue.
3. Candy – Chocolate vs. hard candy
Eating candy is inevitable during the holiday season – or at the very least, difficult to avoid. So when it comes to dipping your fingers in the candy dish, grab chocolate over hard candies. When you chomp, chew and suck on hard candy, you’re bathing your teeth in sugar, whereas chocolate melts quickly and poses less of a risk.
4. Fruit – Raw fruit vs. dried fruit
Often given as a gift or set out when having guests over during the holidays, dried fruit is high in sugar and sticks to your teeth, which feeds the bacteria in your mouth. If you were thinking of bringing dried fruit to your holiday parties this year, try a fresh fruit arrangement instead.
5. Nibbles – Cheese vs. chips
This holiday season, skip the bowl of chips and put out a delicious cheese plate! Cheese is a dental superstar according to research from the Academy of General Dentistry, helping protect our choppers from acid erosion. So if you do partake in drinking wine, soda or coffee, take a bite of cheese after you sip to help keep your mouth happy.
