Tooth decay can affect anyone, regardless of age. Tooth decay is caused by plaque containing bacteria that feeds on the sugars in your diet, resulting in cavities. Cavities form when bacteria consume sugar and convert it into an acid that dissolves the enamel on your teeth. Eating sugary foods is bad for your teeth and contributes to plaque and tooth decay. In this article, we will discuss which foods you should avoid or limit in order to keep your teeth as healthy as possible.
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Which foods should you be most concerned about?
Foods that are sticky and sugary are generally bad for your teeth. When foods are sticky, they tend to stay on your teeth longer, giving bacteria a better chance of damaging your teeth. Acidic foods are also a bad idea because the acid can damage tooth enamel. Sugary and acidic foods and drinks (such as soda) can harm your teeth twice as much.
Although the foods listed below are not necessarily harmful to your health, experts advise that you brush your teeth, floss, and rinse your mouth after eating them to help prevent cavities from forming.
Popcorn
Popcorn is a healthy snack alternative to chips, but it can be very hard on your teeth for a few reasons. We usually eat popcorn while watching a long movie, which gives bacteria more time to damage your teeth. Furthermore, it’s nearly impossible to eat popcorn without getting it stuck between your teeth. After you’ve finished eating, have a toothpick and some water or a good floss handy.
Furthermore, if you bite down on one of those hard unpopped kernels, you will crack your teeth.
Refined carbohydrates
Most of the foods that young children enjoy are high in refined carbohydrates, such as white bread, crackers, chips, or french fries. These are all simple carbohydrates that degrade into sugars. When these sugars combine with bacteria in the mouth, they ferment and produce lactic acid, which is extremely effective at eroding tooth enamel.
Soft white bread and dinner rolls are the worst offenders because they stick to the teeth easily, giving bacteria more time to produce acid.
Fruits dried
Raisins, dried apricots, and fruit roll-ups are commonly thought to be examples of wholesome, nutritious snacks that are better for teeth than candy. However, due to drying, the sugars in these fruits are highly concentrated. Furthermore, their chewy texture causes them to stick to teeth, giving bacteria more time to cause damage.
Soda beverages
Acid is present in all soft drinks whether they contain sugar or not. This can harm your teeth, leading to more cavities and dental erosion. If you want to keep your teeth healthy, try to avoid soft drinks.
If you must drink a soft drink, avoid brushing your teeth right away because the acid softens your tooth enamel, making it more susceptible to abrasion.
Pickles
Pickled foods contain vinegar, which contains acid and is essential to the pickling process. This acid can cause tooth staining as well as enamel erosion. Many pickled foods contain sugar, which contributes to tooth decay.
Wine
Erosive acid, found in both white and red wine, works to soften the enamel. Tannins in red wine can also dry out your mouth and stain your teeth. If you know you’re going to drink wine, brush your teeth first to reduce the amount of plaque that the wine can adhere to. To avoid brushing the wine into your teeth, wait 30 minutes after drinking wine before brushing your teeth.
Fruits of citrus
Citrus fruits can be an important part of any healthy diet, but eating too many of them on their own can wear away at your tooth enamel, leaving your teeth vulnerable to cavities. Lemons, limes, and grapefruit are particularly acidic. Use a straw when drinking juice to allow some of the acid to bypass your teeth.
Sauce for pasta
Tomatoes are high in vitamins, but they are acidic. When you eat pasta with red sauce, the acid in the sauce breaks down your teeth and the carbohydrates in the pasta feed bacteria that cause cavities, causing double the damage to your enamel.
Hard candies
As you wait for the hard candies to dissolve, they linger in your mouth for a while. Some hard candies can take up to ten minutes to dissolve, and there are no health benefits to eating candy. Because the sugary treat spends so much time in your mouth, the bacteria has plenty of time to cause serious harm.
Hard candy can also crack teeth and cause cuts on the inside of your mouth.
Sandwiches with PB&J
Peanut butter is typically loaded with sugar and sticky. To alleviate the problem, use natural peanut butter with no added sugar. In addition, jam is typically high in sugar. Even all-fruit jams contain natural sugars that, if not rinsed out immediately, encourage plaque and bacteria to accumulate.
Some dentists believe that if a person maintains excellent dental hygiene, this can be extended to two years in extreme cases. However, if you have poor dental hygiene, six months is much more appropriate. If you are looking for a dentist Litchfield, we strongly recommend Litchfield Smiles Dentistry.
Alternatively, if you are looking for a cosmetic dentist in Tallahassee, you can check out this one that does veneers, crowns, and dental implants.
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