Beverage Choices and Your Smile

You make thousands of choices a day. What you eat, what you wear, whose texts you return, and whose you don’t – just to name a few. While some choices are more significant than others, certain choices you make every day will have a considerable impact on the health of your smile.

It is easy to focus on a diet that affects your weight because you can easily see the numbers on the scale to tell you whether you’ve lost weight or not. However, when it comes to a healthy diet, there is more to consider than just what the scale tells you. Studies prove that the health of your mouth is a direct indication of the health of your entire body. Understanding this will help you make better decisions when it comes to choosing your next beverage.

You take a shower to get clean, right? You stand under the running water and allow the warm water to rinse away the grime and dirt that have collected on your body. Well, when you drink, the opposite effect occurs. Every time you take a sip, you are coating your teeth and the inside of your mouth with liquid. If you choose sugary and acidic beverages, you are essentially bathing your teeth in harmful sugars and acids.

Cavities and tooth decay occur because oral bacteria interact negatively with certain things you put into your mouth. Oral bacteria are present in massive numbers inside every mouth. These bacteria mean to help break down particles that are left behind after you eat and drink. However, as the bacteria go to work, they create acids to assist them. Since oral bacteria are most attracted to sugary particles, they will congregate in massive quantities and will produce more acids in those areas. Acids are ultimately what lead to holes, or cavities, in the tooth enamel.

On top of oral bacteria creating their own acids, if you throw acidic beverages into the mix, then the teeth are even more vulnerable to damage. Soft drinks, energy drinks, fruit juice, and alcohol all contain acidic ingredients that will weaken and dissolve tooth enamel over time. It is best to limit these beverages to special occasions!

At Juban Cowen Dental Care, we want to partner with you in every aspect of your oral health. We encourage you to make water your beverage of choice. If the health of your smile has been compromised by frequently drinking sugar-laden drinks, contact our practice for treatment to reverse the damage.