By Dr. Karishma Jaradi, Head Dental Surgeon at Dentzz Dental
It is rightly said, ‘You are what you eat’, and this is especially true when it comes to your teeth. Binging on junk edibles is your health’s worst enemy and overloading will just take a toll on your health but also can take bite out of your teeth. The edibles you eat and drink definitely have a powerful impact on your oral condition. Diets that are high on acids, contaminants, and toxins produced by bacterial intake, thrive on your enamels giving a clean entry for tooth decay. Your teeth, mouth, and gums are far more than just tools for eating. These play a vital role in helping you chew and swallow. The mouth being an initial point of contact, all the nutrients consumed are going to reflect on your dental condition. So, all that goes in your mouth impacts not only your overall health but also affects your oral state. In fact, more intake of foods poor in nutrition often has the tendency to show its adverse impacts in your mouth.
Junk foods harm the teeth in the most detrimental way, a major cause for decay of tooth and breakdown of tooth enamel. The major culprits here are sugar-based foods and toxic and non-nutritional junk foods. Throughout the day grazing over high sugary foods might make you fall prey to the sugar trap. Sugars contribute to providing bacteria that produce acids that get accumulated in your enamels, and will slowly progress towards disintegrating and waning your tooth enamels. Starches found in foods like breads, grains, cereals, and salad dressings contain added sugar which can accelerate your tooth decay process.
If you feel you are still unsure and unaware of how toxic foods adversely impact your happy teeth, it’s important you understand that it’s not only sugar which is the main reason causing damage but rather it is the chain of events that follow after you have fallen game to your sweet tooth. Toxic food ingestion can almost hijack your oral health. Due to the continuous tug-of-war that takes place in a mouth, you might often pay no heed to your constant warnings about the hazardous waves of toxic intake. Our mouth is often considered to be a powerhouse of bacteria that are both beneficial and harmful to the oral environment. Excess of toxic intake triggers the damaging bacteria to produce enamel devastating acids. These further make way for cavities and bacterial infections which when untreated can cause a hole in your enamels. These cavities have the ability to go way past the enamel, entering the deepest tooth layers causing discomfort and most likely a tooth loss. Being cautious and limiting your toxic intake is very essential if you wish to give your mouth a fighting chance to repair the mutilation.
Aerated drinks, caned and diet drinks filled with ample sugar and flavour-enhancing organic acid content greatly target your teeth. These sugar-loaded toxins contain acids like citric and phosphoric which can lead to tooth erosion. Health and sports drinks also contain a burst of toxins, artificial flavours, and are full of sugar. The acids present in them tend to stick between teeth causing toothaches and problems. Caramels, candies, lollipops, and gooey delights are the worst when it comes to oral hygiene. These stick stubbornly to the tooth surface. In case these are consumed make sure they are in your mouth only for a brief time. Dried foods like raisins and apricots are no less than caramels since they cling to your enamels. Due to drying up of water, these feature highly concentrated sugar levels. The non-soluble cellulose fiber present in them can trap sugars around the tooth worsening your condition. Starchy foods like potato chips, french fries, and pasta are a big no. Although not sweet in taste, the starch present in them converts to sugar. These easily lodge between tooth crevices.
If you wish to bathe your pearly whites in minerals, along with toxic cut-down, it’s recommended you also stimulate the flow of your saliva. Foods that counteract the acids and deliver ample of minerals and vitamins are your mouth’s best companion. Ways that help enhance and fuel up your salivation are chewing sugar-free gums and reloading your diet with fibrous fruits and vegetables. Consuming dairy products rich in calcium like cheese and yogurt helps fortify your teeth and is better than munching on sugary, starchy, and greasy treats. An efficient way to overpower harmful toxins is by consumption of green and organic teas. This will surely help maintain a healthy balance in your mouth. Along with providing your enamels with nutritious edibles, regular flossing and brushing (at least two times a day) are a must to enhance enamel health.
Tooth-damaging offenders are all around the corner, the end result being faded enamel, diminished tooth whiteness, cracking of crowns, and aging of mouth before time. So, if you aspire for a pleasant smile all through your life, bid adieu to the worst invaders from gate-crashing your teeth.
