If you have been advised by your dietitian or health professional to take sugary snacks or drinks between meals, brush your teeth before each snack or drink whenever possible. 2. In addition, brush your teeth and gums thoroughly twice a day using fluoride tooth paste to remove the bacteria and keep your mouth healthy.
However, this damage can be reversed by minerals. Minerals come from the enamel of your teeth and your saliva through a process called remineralisation. It generates minerals like calcium and phosphates, both of which are good for strengthening teeth.
Within 20 seconds of consuming sugar, it combines with the bacteria hanging out in your mouth to form an acid that starts to damage your teeth. As time goes on, this wears away at the layers in your enamel, eventually resulting in a cavity.
When the sugar is left on your teeth, it causes the acids to not only eats through the enamel, but to often go deeper into other layers of your teeth, and this is what causes cavities.By cutting out sugar, you can stop this process, avoid cavities, and keep that protective enamel around for as long as possible.
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.
A quick rinse with water in your mouth will boost your body's natural ability to clean itself after a meal. Rinsing with water protects your enamel by removing food and sugar leftover, and about 30% of oral bacteria without the forces of brushing that, when combined with acid, can damage your enamel.
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.
The naturally occurring sugar in dried fruit, such as raisins, dates and apricots can also contribute to tooth decay. Other foods have sugar added to them by the manufacturer, which is sometimes called processed food.
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.
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).
Try non-acidic foods: Certain foods are good for your enamel. Many types of fruits and vegetables, dairy products such as milk, and foods or drinks containing fluoride – notably spinach, grapes and black tea – will be useful to naturally restore enamel.
The sugar acts as fuel for acid generating bacteria that corrodes the enamel on your teeth, making them more susceptible to decay. The daily recommended amount of sugar for women shouldn't exceed six teaspoons (25 grams), and the recommended daily amount for men is nine teaspoons (37.5 grams).
Caramel is a sugar that has been processed into a polymer, making it even more likely to cling to the teeth and feed harmful oral bacteria, often up to several hours after eating or drinking. Such added sugars are also often separated from antioxidants in foods, which can help keep oral bacteria at bay.
Honey Is Still Sugar
While honey certainly has some beneficial antibacterial properties, it is still another form of sugar, so consuming it will increase your risk for tooth decay. So, as with all sugar, it's best to enjoy honey in moderation.
Apples and Citrus Fruit
Although not a substitute for brushing and flossing, eating an apple or other fibrus fruits like oranges, carrots or celery can help clean your teeth and increases salivation, which can neutralize the citric and malic acids left behind in your mouth.
Use mouthwash with PH neutralization. Even if the food you consumed wasn't extremely acidic, within a few minutes of beginning to eat, the bacteria in your mouth will begin to transform the sugars and starches into acid. These acids are slightly neutralized by using an alkaline mouthwash with a high PH.
Dentin Hypersensitivity (or Sensitive Dentin) is a dental condition where the teeth are sensitive and feel a sharp pain in response to certain tastes. In some cases, it can be when the teeth ache from hot foods or cold foods, or, in other cases, sweet foods.
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.
“Ideally, you would brush and floss after each meal, but that may not be very realistic for people with busy jobs or hectic schedules,” he says. “So we recommend at least brushing and flossing twice a day, and ideally one of those times will be before bed.”
Mouthwash Doesn't Remove Plaque
Without regular brushing and professional teeth cleanings, it is very difficult to combat plaque buildup on the surface of your teeth. Plaque is damaging to your teeth and can lead to a number of complications, such as: Cavities. Gingivitis & Gum Disease.
Water, however, cleans your mouth with every sip. It washes away leftover food and residue that cavity-causing bacteria are looking for. It also dilutes the acids produced by the bacteria in your mouth.
Experts advise drinking 6-8 glasses of water every day for oxygen to flow freely in your body and help the kidneys and colon eliminate waste. What's best, it helps in flushing out excess sugar from your body.
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.