If you've decided to treat yourself to cake or the occasional sugary snack, you can mitigate the inevitable effects on your teeth by drinking a glass of water afterwards. The water will wash most of the sugar off your teeth, acting as a natural cleaning agent.
Use a mouthrinse to remove as much sugar and sticky residue as possible. While mouthrinses that contain fluoride are ideal, even swishing plain water around your mouth can help when no other option is available. Chew a sugar-free gum after eating sweets to help clean your teeth.
Saliva helps wash away food and harmful sugars, which helps protect your teeth from decay. If you suffer from dry mouth, talk to your dentist about mouthwashes and other treatments.
When sugar is consumed it interacts with the bacteria within the plaque to produce acid [1]. This acid is responsible for tooth decay because it slowly dissolves the enamel creating holes or cavities in the teeth. Tooth decay can lead to tooth abscesses, which may result in the tooth having to be removed [2].
Pollick says, "The clearance of that sugar from the mouth takes about 20 minutes. During that 20 minutes, the bacteria on your teeth are very active... and they convert that sugar to acid." But then within 20 minutes, the acid on your teeth is "sort of" neutralized.
Use it daily. However, don't brush your teeth right after consuming a sugary substance. When sugar does its thing on your teeth, it softens and weakens your tooth enamel. Wait an hour or so after you consume sugar to brush your teeth, so your enamel has enough time to solidify before you brush.
Unfortunately this is not recommended at all. Brushing your teeth immediately after eating or drinking something sugary will spread the sugar around your mouth which may make things worse. The acidity caused by the sugar softens the enamel which means you are at risk of damaging your teeth further by brushing.
Foods and drinks with high acidic levels are actually worse for your teeth than sugar. This is why diet sodas can actually be worse for your teeth than the regular versions. The most common acids in the average diet are carbonic, citric, and phosphoric.
Drinking water will help the body to flush out excess glucose as part of a lifestyle program, especially when a problem with blood sugar has been flagged up, by keeping you feeling fuller and stop you turning to naughty snacks and fizzy drinks.
Remember, it is saliva that washes the acid away and helps repair the teeth. To increase the saliva in your mouth, try chewing sugar-free gum. Eating a cube of cheese or drinking a glass of milk after a meal can help to neutralise the acids (this also contains protein and calories).
In order to help combat the effects of sugar on your mouth, you can complete a simple task that helps restore your mouth's pH- just rinse with water. After you consume your sugary food or beverage, swish some water around in your mouth and spit it out.
Flossing is so important, but many patients overlook it! However, when sugary foods get stuck between your teeth for long durations, it can lead to corrosion of the enamel. In fact, cavities often crop up between the teeth. By flossing, you can remove these sugars before the damage is done.
Brush your teeth 30-60 minutes after eating sweets.
Wait at least 30 minutes for saliva to displace some of the acids. If you are unable to brush 30 minutes after, it's a good idea to brush your teeth before consuming sweet or acidic food and to drink a glass of water after you are finished.
Once tooth enamel is damaged, it cannot be brought back. However, weakened enamel can be restored to some degree by improving its mineral content. Although toothpastes and mouthwashes can never “rebuild” teeth, they can contribute to this remineralization process.
While it is possible to strengthen and fortify enamel with substances such as fluoride, it is important to understand that no product can cause lost enamel to “grow back.” Once your tooth's enamel is worn away, it is worn away forever, and can only be restored with synthetic solutions such as veneers.
Consuming Certain Foods and Drinks
“Certain foods that are high in tannins, such as red wine, are potential causes of yellow teeth,” notes Crest. Other teeth-staining foods include coffee, citrus fruits and juices, soft drinks, teas, berries, tomato-based sauces, curry, balsamic vinegar, and soy sauce.
When the enamel is eroded so badly, in its thinnest form your inner layer can be seen, dentin. Dentin has a natural yellow color. So, if your enamel is transparent enough to show your dentin, your teeth look yellow even if you brush them every day.
In most cases, it's best to brush your teeth before breakfast. This ensures that your enamel is protected and that you don't run out of time before leaving the house for work or school. Sugar-free gum is a great way to clean your teeth and achieve fresh breath after breakfast while also supporting a healthy smile.
Causes of Teeth Sensitivity to Sugar
Tooth sensitivity, regardless of the cause, can result from the loss of enamel on your teeth. There are many causes for why teeth are sensitive to sugar, but common causes include brushing too hard or enjoying too many highly acidic foods.
“We definitely recommend holding off on brushing after consuming anything acidic, whether it's fruit, soda, juice, or sour candy,” says Ezzard Rolle, DDS, assistant professor of dental medicine at Columbia University's College of Dental Medicine.
Brushing your teeth before you go to sleep at night helps protect against plaque buildup, tooth decay, and gum disease. If you are particularly susceptible to cavities and gum disease, dentists recommend that you brush immediately after dinner, then again right before bedtime.
Water can naturally wash away unwanted food particles and sugar that sticks to your teeth after eating—it kind of acts like a natural toothbrush. Swishing water after meals is a great way to do this, but simply drinking water throughout the day is also important to keep the teeth clean and prevent cavities.
Drinking water while having your favourite sweet treat may give you a bigger sugar spike than what's considered healthy, says researchers.