You probably agree that regular exercise and healthy foods are good for your body. They’re good for your teeth too! But did you know that what you eat and drink affects your dental health too? Just like whole body health, oral health is all about daily habits and diet.

What you eat

Diet accounts for two-thirds of your dental health. Yes, it’s a lot, but it’s true!

Eliminating just a few problematic foods can improve your oral health, which in turn helps to support and improve your whole health.

What foods should you avoid? Anything that coats your teeth with sugar for an extended period. Even sticky fruits cause cavities, because cavity-causing bacteria thrives on sugar.

Even foods that taste salty, like Goldfish crackers, can dissolve into a sugary paste. Small children often chew slowly and need to be reminded to drink water, which increases the risk.

To help you avoid cavity-causing foods, we’ve prepared a healthy snack guide for families. It’s great for kids and adults — we all need a little help!

What you drink

It’s important not to stop at food choices. Drinks are often a hidden source of cavities and dental health problems.

Juices, pop, sports drinks — most of what you’ll find at your favourite shop — are acidic, sugary, and not much else. They coat your teeth with sugar until you brush.

Water is what your body needs to stay hydrated, and it helps keep your teeth free of cavity-causing build-up too!

Meal planning

The snack guide helps you make healthy choices, but it’s essential to have the right foods in stock when you and your family are hungry and ready to eat.

That’s where meal planning can really help. If you’ve already planned out your week, selected the recipes, done the shopping, and even prepared the meals in advance it will be a lot harder to order junk food or swing by the drive-thru. You might even save money!

Sometimes you know what you should or shouldn’t be eating, but are just too busy to prepare it yourself. If this sounds like you, we’ve partnered with Nutrimeals — a Calgary-based meal-prep and delivery service — to help you bridge the gap.

Nutrimeals also offers dietician consultations to help you customize your meal planning to your specific dietary needs. (Many company-provided benefits programs allow you to claim the cost of dietary consultations.)

Help kids (and adults) easily remember which foods increase the risk of cavities so they can make a healthy choice. Post this snack guide on your fridge today! Download PDF to print ⬇︎

😁
NO Cavity Risk

🥒 raw vegetables
🧀 cheese
🥜 nuts, 100% nut butters
🥩 all meats
🧈 all fats
🥚 eggs
🥕 low carb foods
🚰 drink water if you’re thirsty!

🙂
LOW Cavity Risk

🥛 whole milk
🍎 crunchy fresh fruits
🍞 whole grain bread
🥑 natural, fresh smoothies
🍫 dark chocolate (>70% cacao)
🌾🥣 oatmeal (no sugar added)
🍦 yogurt, ice cream

⚠️ These foods can still cause cavities, but rinse away easier.

🤭
HIGH Cavity Risk

🍬 candy
🥤 pop, sports drinks
🧃 juice (fresh or not!)
🍫🥛 chocolate milk
🍪 cookies, crackers, goldfish
🍇☀️ raisins, other dried fruit
🍡 fruit snacks, granola bars
🍯🥣 artificial cereals
🍌🍊 bananas, oranges (max. one a day)

Preventative Dental Health Tips

🚰  Drink water with and after every meal.
⏰  Try for 4 regular meals with water in-between.
👟  Help children brush daily, until they can tie shoelaces.
🎂  Schedule a first dental visit at age 1.
🌙  After the night time brushing, only drink water.
☀️  Get enough Vitamin D.