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A healthy diet naturally supplies all the nutrients your child needs to grow.  It helps make teeth and gums healthy, strong, and pain-free. 

A healthy diet includes lots of fruits and vegetables and a good balance of grains, dairy products, meat, fish, and nuts. Be careful not to include too many sugars and starches because these can lead to tooth decay. Every time your child eats sugary food, acids attack for 20 minutes or longer. The more acid attacks that teeth have to endure, the more likely it is that tooth decay and cavities will develop. 

Most children don’t practice good dental health when snacking, so  it’s important to keep healthy snack ideas for your children in mind.  Save sugary foods, specially gooey or chewy sweets, for dessert, when your child can brush teeth soon after eating. 

Healthy snack ideas include:

• fresh fruits and raw vegetables such as apples, oranges, melons, pineapple, celery, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, and unsweetened fruit and vegetable juices
• grains such as bread, plain bagels, unsweetened cereals, unbuttered popcorn, low-salt pretzels, and plain crackers
• milk and dairy products like low or non-fat milk, low or non-fat yogurt or cottage cheese, and low or non-fat cheese
• high-protein foods like sliced chicken and turkey, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, and nuts

For more information, please visit:

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD)
The AAPD provides dental health information in question-and-answer form.  This link takes you to the section on diet and snacking.
http://www.aapd.org/publications/brochures/snacking.asp

Colgate-Palmolive
The Colgate-Palmolive site contains an extensive amount of oral health information.  This link takes you to the section called "Diet and Your Child’s Teeth."
http://www.colgate.com/cp/oralcare.class/oralhealthcenter/oc_article.jsp?articleID=35

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Following the FDA food guide pyramid recommendations will help keep your meals balanced and healthy. These links will take you to guidelines for a recommended diet and to the FDA kids' page, which covers topics from food safety to getting enough calcium.
http://www.nalusda.gov/fnic/Fpyr/pyramid.gif
http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/kids/default.htm

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
This link takes you to the brochure, “Snack Smart: for healthy teeth!”  It contains information on tooth decay, tips for preventing tooth decay, healthy snack ideas, and recommendations for parents.
http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/health/pubs/snaksmrt/main.htm