Your Diet and Your Oral Health Go Hand in Hand

Take the Right Bites to a Healthier Smile!

Your diet has a larger impact on the overall health of your mouth than you may think.

We all know that our teeth don’t appreciate sugar (or, more specifically, the acids that the sugar creates with bacteria in the mouth). These acids eat away at valuable tooth enamel, eventually leading to cavities if the decay progresses. No thanks!

The good news is, you can easily make adjustments to your diet to include more dental-friendly foods, and limit your intake of foods that are known to cause decay. By combining a healthy, balanced diet with a proper cleaning routine, you’ll be on the right track to flawless oral care. We’ve got the scoop on which foods/drinks you should try to avoid, and which ones it wouldn’t hurt to incorporate into your diet more often.

Limit your intake of these:

FERMENTABLE CARBOHYDRATES
These are foods that are notorious for causing decay, as they break down while they’re in the mouth. This includes:
cakes, cookies, candies/sugary mints, muffins, breads/crackers, granola/cereals, bananas, raisins, potato chips and fries. In addition, when you do indulge in these foods, try to limit eating them as a snack in-between meals, and eat them along with your meal instead to reduce the exposure of acid to your teeth.

ACIDIC FOODS/DRINKS
Highly acidic foods and drinks such as citrus fruits and juices can contribute to the wearing away of enamel. Protect your teeth from the harmful effects of acids as often as you can.

SUGARY DRINKS
Soft drinks, or any drinks with sugar (natural or added) ultimately expose harmful acids to your teeth, increasing your risk for decay and cavities.

And, boost your intake of these:

Water and sugarless tea work wonderfully to wash away food particles and debris, while foods like cheese, yogurt, meats, greens, and nuts provide essential vitamins and minerals that can help to strengthen and remineralize enamel. Definitely include more of these into your diet!

Other habits to practice:

Try to brush your teeth after you consume anything sugary. This will ensure that harmful acids have no time to form and do what they do best. If you can’t brush after every sugary meal or snack, then at least ensure you’re brushing twice daily (and flossing at least once a day).

In addition to this, chewing sugarless gum (particularly ones sweetened with Xylitol) can help to protect teeth against aid wear and decrease the level of bacteria in the mouth. It also increases your salivary flow, helping to wash away food particles. Sweet!

In need of a dental check-up or cleaning? Etobicoke Dental Health Centre has you covered! Our wonderful Etobicoke dentist team would love to provide you with oral care. Contact us today.

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