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What greater way to celebrate Halloween than with tasty and healthy snacks? This is a fun recipe to do with your child that's interactive and yummy!

Monster Apple Bites

Ingredients

1. 2 Apples - any color of your choice! (We chose green apples).
2. 1/4 cup of nut butter - any butter of your choice if your child is allergic to nuts! (We chose peanut butter).
3. 1/4 cup of seeds - any seed of your choice that look like teeth! (We chose pumpkin seeds, but you can also use sunflower seeds).
4. 2-3 strawberries
5. Handful of sugar googly eyes - these are available for purchase from the bakery aisle

Steps

1. Quarter each apple to create the monster. Cut the middle out of the slice to create a mouth - doesn't need to be perfect because you'll be filling in the gap with your nut butter!
2. Coat the inside of the "mouth" with the nut butter.
3. Place seeds along the top of the "mouth" to make teeth.
4. Place 1 sliced strawberry inside of the "mouth" to create a tongue.
5. Dab each googly eye with a bit of nut butter to stick the eyes to the apple slice.
6. Ta-da! Monster apples!

Hope this brings your child happy smiles on Halloween!

You may not know, but dentists can have a sweet tooth too! We love sweets just as much as you do, so with Halloween coming up, we wanted to give you tips on how to continue to take care of your teeth during this sugary holiday!

Candy that are "tooth-friendly" are candy that quickly leave the mouth and are not sticky! Chocolate is the best "tooth-friendly" type of sweet! It enters the mouth and leaves the teeth really fast as it melts away.

Candy that are not as "tooth-friendly" are candy that are sticky. These types of candy stay in the mouth for a long time! They stick really tight to the chewing surfaces of teeth and can potentially cause cavities. We want to avoid too much of gummy bears, gummy worms, taffy, and caramels.

The most important thing is to eat sweets in moderation. Keep your child's candy in a place that is not visible. Having candy out in the open and easily accessible will increase the amount of times your child will want to have that candy. Also, give candy as a special treat, not as a type of food they eat on a daily basis.

And of course, don't forget to brush your child's teeth! Remember to brush two times a day, two minutes each time.

We hope everyone has a safe and healthy Halloween, and keep your teeth shiny and clean!

With sports resuming, we wanted to turn our attention to a topic that's not discussed as often - Mouthguards! What are mouthguards you may ask? These are also known as mouth protectors because they help cushion any injury to the face. Wearing a mouthguard minimizes the risk of broken teeth and injury to lips, tongue, face, and jaw. The teeth we are most concerned about are the upper front teeth. The lower teeth are more protected because they are further back, but your upper teeth are front and center to any injury to the face! Lost of your child's front teeth may affect the way they smile, talk, and eat. By preventing these injuries, we can protect your child's beautiful smile!

A mouthguard should be worn as part of the athletic gear of the sport that they play. Did you know that dental injury was most common during baseball in children aged 7-12 years and during basketball in children aged 13-17 years? These higher collision and contact sports increase the risk for injury!

The best type of mouthguard is one that is custom made for your child by a dentist. The mouthguard is made specifically from a mold of your child's mouth so that it fits nice and snug. You can also purchase a mouthguard from any drug store, known as a boil-and-bite mouthguard. These mouthguards are softened in boiled water, then inserted to your child's mouth to allow it to adapt to the shape of their mouth. They do not have the perfect fit of a custom mouthguard, but will still be able to protect your child's mouth! Lastly, there are stock mouthguards also found in drug stores that are inexpensive and come preformed and ready to wear. The only downside to this type of mouthguard is that they don't fit very well, may be bulky and makes breathing and talking very difficult.

In addition, if your child has braces, a mouthguard becomes even more important! Any injury to the face may not only cause damage to the teeth but also to the orthodontic appliances that may end up injurying your child's gums and cheeks.

You should always work with your dentist regarding choosing the right mouthguard for your child. As your child grows, they may need to switch mouthguards to adapt to the growth of their jaws! In addition, keeping their mouthguard clean is as important as brushing their teeth - we don't want any infections to start from bacteria growing inside the mouthguard.

Let's work together as a team to help maintain your child's smile!

Did you know that it is recommended for parents to help their children brush their teeth until their child is at least 7-8 years old? You may say "Wow! We still need to help them even when they are that old?" The key thing here isn't only the age, but how well is your child brushing their teeth? Every child is different. We have seen 5 year old children who are perfect brushers, and we have seen some 10 year old children who still need that extra help. What matters the most is what to look for as you're helping your child brush in order to help guide them towards better brushing on their own.

Here are our tips to help you brush with your child:

• Each tooth has 3 "sides" that need to be brushed: the cheek side, the tongue side, and the biting surface. For the front teeth, you would brush the lips side, the tongue side, and the biting surface.
• Look at the area where the gums touch the tooth, are there a lot of white/yellow food particles stuck there? This is what we call plaque! It is important to help your child brush these areas to prevent cavities.
• The areas where plaque likes to stick the most are the cheek sides of the upper teeth and the tongue sides of the lower teeth. With the cheeks and tongue squishing against those sides of the teeth, it's hard for your child to brush there, so spend extra time checking these spots!
• Divide the mouth into 4 different sections - upper right, upper left, lower left, lower right. Spend 30 seconds brushing each section, which will equal a total of 2 minutes of brushing!
• Don't forget to brush the tongue! If the tongue remains white and coated over time, this can be a cause of stinky breath!
• Over time, as you work with your child to brush their teeth, they will know what to look for when they are brushing. They can brush on their own first, then you as the parent can check their brushing and help remind them of any places they have missed. Then before you know it, they'll be able to brush super well on their own!
• As a rule of thumb, children are usually able to brush their teeth on their own once they know how to tie their own shoelaces. This demonstrates that they have enough hand motor skills in order to brush their teeth effectively!

We hope these tips help you and your child become a better brushing team together!