Kids Moving & Dental Health Connection
Fun in the Nor Cal Sun!
When the sun is out or the tide is in, it’s time to get outside and move your body. We know exercise is good for the body, but what does it do for your oral health?
A regular exercise routine does a lot to help the body maintain a healthy weight, which has been shown to reduce a person’s risk of gum disease. The Center for Disease and Prevention recommends children get at least 60 minutes or more of moderate to intense activity per day. Adults are recommended 105 or more minutes a week. Playing at the park will only get you so far in this summer heat.
Photo Credit: Surf Xtreme Elk Grove
Surfing and swimming are a great way to stay active when it’s too hot outside to move, and provide a rigorous and exciting landscape for exploration. It will keep you parents/aunties/uncles active too, as you chase the little ones this way and that! Below are a list of some pools and parks with water features in your area. Our Elk Grove Pediatric Dental Office is pretty lucky to be right down the road from one of the only indoor surf places in Northern California.
For those of you headed to the bay area for a little surf action we encourage sun safety! To protect your skin and eyes, always remember to apply the sunblock and the super sweet summer shades. Don’t let the sun stop your fun! To check out surf conditions just a short day trip away from any of Surfside Kids Dental locations check out the Northern California Surf Reports.
There is, however, an unexpected health risk that comes with exercise indoors or outdoors. An increased risk of cavities. Strange, but true. According to this article in the New York Times a correlation has been found between increased levels of working out and an increase in cavities.
Ultimately, it seems that saliva is so beneficial to our teeth that when a person’s mouth dries out from breathing through their mouth during exercise, their teeth suffer. It may seem like a strange thing to train ourselves and our children to do, but breathing through your nose when exercising could save your teeth. Not to mention these also strange but true health benefits of breathing through your nose. Just like we teach our children to brush their teeth, we can help them protect their dental health by encouraging them to breathe through their noses when their heart is racing.
Now, All of this talk of being outside and getting exercise in the water makes us want to head to the beach or the river and hop on a board. Surf’s up, my friends!
Follow the links below to our collection of favorite pools or parks in your neighborhood. Have a surfin’ good time out there!
Pleasant Hill- Castle Rock recreation area
Sacramento- Southside Pool
San Jose- Parma Park
Elk Grove- Surf Xtreme
Keeping the fun going, we have created a Surfside word search. Feel free to print this out for your little ones to find the following words:
NOSE BREATHING, DRINK WATER, SUNBLOCK, SWIM, SPLASH
