October is designated to spreading awareness about the importance of oral health and caring for your teeth during a month when 600 million pounds of candy is sold for Halloween each year. Halloween actually starts a long season of sweet-centric holidays, like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day so dental care is more essential than ever. Here’s what you can do to observe National Dental Hygiene Month and to help spread the importance of dental health care this month.
1. Practice Good Dental Hygiene
Make sure to brush at least twice a day or after each meal, floss every day (before you go to bed to make it easier to remember), and to visit the dentist regularly.
2. Make An Appointment With Your Dentist
Visit your dentist every six months. If you haven’t scheduled an appointment in awhile, be sure to do so before the holidays hit. If your teeth are already in bad shape, the consumption of unhealthy foods and candy could damage your teeth further.
3. Limit Halloween Candy Consumption
Halloween not only takes a toll on your teeth but also on your wallet. Out of the $9 billion dollars Americans spend on Halloween each year, approximately $3 billion is spent on costumes, about $2.7 billion is spent on decorations, and $2.6 billion is spent on candy.
Be mindful of you and your children’s consumption of Halloween candy. Depriving your child of candy may want him or her to want them more. A helpful tip is to allow snacking of candy immediately after trick-or-treating or after dinner and tossing the rest away.
4. Use A Hashtag In Your Social Media Posts
If you schedule a dentist’s appointment during the month of October, take a selfie of your smile post-visit and share it with the hashtag #DentalHygieneMonth or #NationalDentalHygieneMonth.
Help spread dental awareness to your friends and family before the holidays arrive. Schedule a dental checkup at C&C Dentistry to ensure your smile is ready for the holidays.