Why You Shouldn't Get Tricked Into Eating Too Much Candy - WLNS TV 6 Lansing - Jackson | Your Local News Leader

Why You Shouldn't Get Tricked Into Eating Too Much Candy

Halloween is the one time of year where excited girls and boys get to dress up, be with their friends and go door to door trick or treating for candy.

But dentists say it can be a time of stress when it comes to your health.

6 News talked with a local dentist who hopes parents and children can use the day as reminder on how tooth decay can be very spooky.

As children go door to door looking for something to fill their sweet tooth, dentist Susan Maples says finding a treat that won't affect their teeth is a real trick.

"Cavities are caused from the bacteria in the mouth eats the sugar and produces acids," said Dentist Susan Maples.

Dr. Maples says the more sticky the candy, like jolly ranchers and taffy, the more threatening to tooth decay

"When sugars are stuffed down into that groove, the sticky sugars, they take a long time to dissolve out of there, that's why they cause tooth decay."

She says you're better off with chocolate and anything with nuts.

Dr. Susan Maples hopes Halloween is a learning lesson for both parents and children on the importance of understanding how to read labels on packages of candy to understand the amount of sugar inside.

Maples says to figure out how many teaspoons of sugar are in a piece of candy take the total amount of sugar in grams and divide by 5.

But more importantly, Dr. Maples says parents should keep an eye on how much kids are eating and how often.

"As a treat now and then whether it's liquid sugar, which is like a liquid candy bar or candy, an occasional treat is fine we just don't want to make it a staple in our diet."

A treat for one day is ok, but the doctor says don't be tricked for longer that.

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