On Halloween, the “goal of 36.4 million trick-or-treaters is the acquisition of some of the $19 billion worth of candy produced by nearly 1,800 American candy makers.  Americans consume about 25 pounds of candy annually.” – Inside Dentistry, October, 2011

That’s A LOT of candy, wouldn’t you agree? As a dentist, I would not be doing my job if I didn’t at least make one gesture to limit your intake of all that goodness (sorry, it’s my job). The cool part is that I’ve a solution that will definitely soften the blow of having to part with all that goodness (again, sorry). Here it is: Until Friday, November 4th, for every pound of candy that you bring into our office, we’ll pay you $2! That is no chump change. Similar halloween buy backs usually pay $1/lb, but we’re upping the stakes because we’re serious about keeping your teeth free from the treacherous grip of all that goodness (really, sorry). Perhaps the coolest part of all this is that our office will then donate all the candy to Operation Gratitude, which sends over 100,000 care packages each year to individually named US Service Members deployed in hostile regions, to their children left behind and to Wounded Warriors recuperating in Transition Units.

I hope that you’ll participate in “Operation Candy for Gratitude”, but I won’t fault you for sneaking a chocolate (or three). Enjoy. Indulge. Binge. Yes, I said, “Binge”. In the context of your dental health, it’s better that you chomp down all your candy in one sitting (perhaps for breakfast the day after), than snack on the same bag of candy over the span of several days.

Stay tuned for more useful candy facts to follow…