If your child takes a daily multivitamin, you know there’s a wide variety of types and flavors. Adults may remember hard chewable children’s vitamins with a sweet, but odd flavor. These days, improvements in formulations provide different textures, flavors, and shapes. Your child can even enjoy vitamins in a pliable, fruit-flavored gummy. If your child fights you on consuming the traditional hard multi-vitamins, gummies may seem like the perfect answer to your parenting quandary. Unfortunately, the health benefits of gummy vitamins might be leveled by the bad effects on your dental health.
Are Gummies so Bad?
Leave it to our modern society to mass market a healthy supplement in a candy form. What’s wrong with a little sugar in the morning, right? You may put your fair share in your coffee. Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean that sucrose is not big deal. The bacteria in your mouth want breakfast too, after all. In fact, they are such fans of sugar that when they enjoy a feast, they respond with lactic acid production. This does damage to your tooth enamel and adds to the production of plaque which hurts your teeth as well as your gums. If you want your child to avoid tooth decay, you may want to think twice about gummy vitamins or any sticky fruit snacks likely to stay lodged in tooth crevices.
Gummy Caution
The next time you pick up a jar of vitamins for your little one, take a peek at the nutritional facts. Even if the bottle can claim a nice variety of daily recommended values of vitamins and minerals, some of them may qualify more as “healthy candy” than an actual supplement. If your child resists keeping up with their oral hygiene, the remnants of sticky, sugary gummies will easily stick in the cracks and crevices of your teeth. If the only vitamin your child is willing to eat are the gummy types, at least make sure that they rinse with water and brush their teeth well after consumption.
About Dr. Jeffrey Allen
Dr. Jeffrey Allen provides comfortable dental care to patients of all ages. Call (641) 628-1121 today to schedule a checkup and cleaning, cosmetic consultation, or second-opinion visit. We are located on the west side of the historic town square in Pella, IA. Please see the map for directions.