Dental Dietary Advice in Brighton & Adelaide

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Diet and Oral Health

What You Eat and How Often You Eat It, Is Just as Important for Your Teeth and Gums as it is For Your Body.

What we eat and drink has an effect on our mouths and teeth.

Food and drinks that contain sugar react with the bacteria in your mouth and produce acid; this attacks your tooth enamel and begins causing decay.

Your general health and your resistance to many diseases depends a lot on eating a healthy, balanced diet. Your eating and drinking habits not only affect the health of your body, it also affects your teeth.

Dental plaque is a soft sticky substance that builds up on your teeth. It is mostly made up of bacteria, which feed on sugar from food and drink, producing acids as a waste product.

The acid attacks the teeth by dissolving the minerals in the tooth substance. If this happens too often, tooth decay results.

After an acid attack, teeth can repair themselves if given the opportunity, with the right oral hygiene and conditions.

Preventing Acid Attacks on Your Teeth

Most dental problems can be avoided if you remove the plaque by brushing twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste and don’t have sugary snacks and/or acidic drinks too often during the day.

Reducing how often you have sugary drinks and snacks will help to maintain your optimal oral health. Foods such as cheese, fresh fruit, nuts and vegetable sticks including carrot and celery, make good substitutes for sweet treats.

Chewing sugar free gum will stimulate saliva production, your natural neutraliser to mouth acid which helps teeth to repair themselves.

To learn more about how you can protect your teeth through diet and reduce your (and your children’s) visits to the dentist, contact our dental hygienists who can offer personalised advice for you and your children.

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