It's a favorite on Halloween nights, and the usual pick out of candy jars placed around businesses. Even Willy Wonka loves it because he basically created it. So you'd think Laffy Taffy is okay to eat, right? Actually, it's one of the worst candies you can put into your mouth. Dentists have advised that you should stop eating the fruity, chewy candy.
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What is Laffy Taffy?
Laffy Taffy is a taffy candy made by Ferrara Candy Company, previously distributed by Nestle. The company is responsible for many candy bars and hard candies they've accumulated over the years.
The taffy rectangles come in a variety of tangy or fruit flavors. The fun part of eating them is the assorted flavors and figuring out which one you want to it. They also print jokes on the wrappers.
But here's where things get tricky. These candies aren't made of natural flavors. You'll find from the wrappers that there's corn syrup, hydrogenated cottonseed oil, and artificial flavoring to name a few. All of which are the ingredients we try so hard to stay away from.
Why you should stop buying Laffy Taffy?
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The dental team at Robert M. McLean, DDS, PC, have even gone as far as to put Laffy Taffy candy on their "scary" candy list. Under the category of sticky and gummy candies, Laffy Taffy joins gummy bears and caramel as the candy you should avoid.
All of those candies are bite-size and don't have a disclaimer. But sometimes the smallest things in life can make the greatest impact. In this case, the impact is not good for you.
The Atlanta dentists' reasoning actually makes a lot of sense. All of these candies are super sticky so they ... "cause a whole monster of problems from enamel loss to tooth damage. The sticky/gummy candies adhere to your teeth giving the sugar time to seep into all those nooks and crannies."
The candies are very sugary, so when you bite on them they stick to your teeth as the sugar seeps through your cracks. Hello, cavities! If you recall the last time you put one of the candies in your mouth, even worse if you ate Laffy Taffy rope, you spend more time using your tongue, to get the candy off your teeth, than you do chewing on it. Weird take on snacking if you really think about it.
So the next time you think about buying a variety pack of Laffy Taffy, whether for you or your child, think about your wellness. As the famous song phrase goes "Girl, shake dat laffy taffy." Just... don't eat it.
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