3 Lifestyle Habits That Have A Major Impact On Your Dental Health
Most people don’t really give much thought to lifestyle in relation to dental health. A quick brushing and flossing in the morning and at night, and that’s it as far as dental care is concerned. Sure that’s important but what you do in between matters too. These three lifestyle aspects have a major impact your oral health.
Consuming Too Many Sugary Foods And Drinks
Sugar is the most common cause of cavities and tooth decay. When you consume sugary foods and drinks, bacteria in your mouth convert the sugar into acids. These acids slowly erode the protective enamel coating of the teeth, resulting in painful cavities and tooth decay.
What’s particularly harmful for the teeth are sweetened drinks, sucking candy and sticky desserts. These exposure your teeth to sugar for prolonged periods of time, which can be extremely harmful as the acids have a longer time to eat into the enamel.
Smoking
Smoking has a long list of adverse effects on your overall health and oral health issues are among the top of the list. Staining the teeth is one of the most noticeable effects of smoking on the teeth but still, that can be discounted as just an aesthetic issue. What’s more serious are the other problems.
Studies suggest that smoking may inhibit blood flow to the teeth and gums. The restricted blood flow and resultant lack of oxygen can result in several oral health issues from bone shrinkage and teeth loss to acceleration of gum disease.
Smoking also hampers the production of saliva and aggravated dry mouth which is a serious problem given that saliva plays a crucial role in protecting the teeth from decay.
The most serious consequence of smoking is the onset of oral cancer.
Alcohol
Alcohol affects oral health at so many different levels.
The sugar in the alcohol does as many damage to tooth enamel as other sugary foods and drinks and because you are more likely to nurse your drinks over a prolonged period, the erosive action is much more severe.
Alcohol also causes dehydration, which hampers saliva production in the mouth, leaving the teeth without the protective action of saliva.
Going on an alcohol binge often ends up in a night of acid reflux and vomiting. This exposes the teeth to even more acids, exacerbating the erosion of the enamel and weakening the teeth even further.
What You Can Do To Mitigate The Damage Of Lifestyle Habits On Your Teeth
The best thing you can do to keep your teeth healthy is to give up those lifestyle habits that cause premature decay and disease. We understand that that’s a huge commitment but it doesn’t have to be an all or nothing option. There are ways that you can mitigate the damage to your teeth.
One of the most effective ways to limit the damage to your teeth is by rinsing out your mouth with plain water after consuming any sweet food or drinks, drinking alcohol or smoking. The water washes away the sweet and acidic residues from your teeth protecting the enamel from their corrosive effects.
Scheduling regular dental checkups with one of our dentists at Springfield or Richlands is just as important. This will allow your dentist to spot any cavities at the beginning stages and treat them immediately before they progress and require more intensive treatment.
