Help Your Children Make Healthy Choices On Halloween (NAPSA)—You’ve worked hard to teach your children good oral hygiene, but how can you help them maintain it on Halloween? Between television commercials and displays in the grocery aisles it’s hard to avoid the temptation to munch on sugary treats. Tooth decay, caused in part by the consumption of sugar, combined with poor oral care, can be avoided by knowing what to eat and how to care for your teeth. Crest Healthy Smiles 2010, a national program designed to combat the oral health epidemic, offers tips to help your child stay cavity-free this Halloween! * Keep spooky smiles away! Treats that are sticky, like gummy candy, stick to teeth and provide the perfect breeding ground for bacteria that cause cavities. Look for sweets that wash awayeasily, like chocolate, because it will reduce your children’s chances of damaging their smiles. * Scare bad bacteria away by brushing twice a day, for two minutes. Seventy-nine percent (79%) of children that responded to a Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 poll said they like to brush their teeth, so encourage your children to join in the fun! Challenge them to brush every time they eat a piece of candy, particularly at night whenit’s important to go to bed with a sugar-free mouth. Make brushing a fun activity by brushing with cool toothbrushes, like Crest SpinBrush Spider-Man 2 or Dora the Explorer. * Floss your way out of haunted territory. Flossing removes plaque from under the gum line and between teeth that cannot be removed by brushing alone. Also, flossing before brushing loosens plaque and debris, which allows it to be brushed away easily. Use floss twice a day and any eerie creatures will be scared away! * Join in the Halloween fun. Instead of candy, buy travel-sized toothpastes to give to your children in your neighborhood. Visit your local retailer for the latest toothpaste samples in fun flavors andcolors. About Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 Based on the principle that good oral health is integral to overall health, Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 combines the vision of Crest with the resources of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the American Dental Association, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and other leaders of the dental community to affect change in the state of the country’s oral health by 2010. The program will reach more than 50 million children and their families by 2010.
