July is National Ice Cream Month! At Teddy Bear Children’s Dentistry, we can all agree that there are so many tasty ice cream flavors. However, we tend to prefer the fruity flavors that are cold and refreshing for the hot days in The Valley.
Some of our favorite ice cream flavors include birthday cake with blackberries, chocolate malt, lemon sherbet, lemon blueberry, and strawberry crème fraiche. From time to time, we enjoy our ice cream with a fresh waffle cone. Yummy! We also love a good Acai bowl! Of course, we could go on for days about different ice cream flavors we enjoy, but the list above is a small sample size of our favorites.
If you are looking for ice cream that may be a little better for you, we would encourage looking for homemade ice cream with fruits and minimally processed with a limited amount of ingredients that are easy to pronounce. It’s important that we are aware of the nutrition components of the ice cream we're consuming. For example, Acai frozen treats are filled with antioxidants which turns out to be very beneficial to one's health.
In terms of your oral health, did you know that sugary drinks are known to lower the saliva pH which can create the ideal saliva environment to cause bacterial growth that leads to cavities? It’s true! Not to mention the acid producing bacteria’s increase the loss of minerals from the enamel leading to soft enamel lesions, which is the beginning of the cavity process. This is why proper dental hygiene is so important.
With proper dental hygiene, tooth decay is 100% preventable. Since baby teeth are vulnerable to decay from their very first appearance, children's teeth should be brushed for two minutes two times a day, and flossed as soon as they start touching. Also, between snacks we encourage drinking lots of water, using Xylitol spray and toothpaste to help the fight against tooth decay.
As for some healthy alternatives, a variety of fresh and cold fruits will do the trick during the summer days. We suggest having a fruity agua Fresca in sunny Southern California, however, we recommend foregoing the sweeteners and adding little slices of fresh fruits for a tasty and refreshing treat! Please remember that the overconsumption of unhealthy beverages such as soda, sports drinks, and even 100% fruit juice can contribute to risk of diet-related chronic diseases, such as obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and tooth decay. When in doubt, drink a cup of cold water.
For those with upcoming appointments, please note that we continue to follow universal standard precautions with all of our patients. We’re still staggering patients to limit the capacity of people in the office. We have an updated air filtration ventilation system in the building and our office. Because we're a pediatric dental office and most of our patients are under the age of the vaccination requirements, we continue to require the use of masks for all of the families visiting our office.
Here at Teddy Bear Children's Dentistry we're wishing you a joyful and refreshing summer! During all that fun, please remember to keep up with your oral hygiene routine. We look forward to seeing you at your next visit!
National Ice Cream Month!