The Destructive Dental Mistakes You’re Making Every Day
As dentists, some of the most destructive mistakes patients make are often those they consider to be minor.
Most of us know that actions like smoking or playing contact sports without a mouth guard and likely to do some serious damage to your teeth. However, some minor things you do every day without thinking are often the most destructive for your teeth and the reason your teeth are struggling.
The destructive dental mistakes you’re making every day
Drinking sparkling water
Your dentist is likely to have told you to avoid sugar-filled fizzy drinks, but one of the lesser-known culprits for destroying tooth enamel is fizzy water.
Fizzy water contains carbonic acid, which launches an attack on your tooth enamel and any exposed dentine (the substance underneath your tooth enamel). As dentine is weaker than tooth enamel, once it is exposed, cavities and and sensitivity can become very possible problems.
The takeaway: Remember that even if it doesn’t contain sugar, it can still wreak havoc on your teeth. Minimise the effects of fizzy drinks on your teeth by using a straw.
Rinsing after brushing
Swilling some water around in your mouth might feel like the right thing to do after brushing your teeth, but you’re depriving your teeth of vital protection.
Fluoride is an essential protective ingredient in toothpaste, responsible for hardening your tooth enamel and making it more resistant to acid attacks. Rinsing your teeth means you’re not allowing your teeth to reap the full effects of fluoride.
The takeaway: Wait at least 15 minutes before rinsing or drinking water after brushing your teeth.
Brushing too soon after eating
This largely depends on the kind of food you’re eating. One of the classic parts of a Western breakfast is orange juice, a drink high in sugar and acid (many of us also enjoy lemon water in the mornings to aid with digestion).
These drinks high in acid can be problematic, especially if you brush your teeth immediately after consuming them - timing is everything when it comes to brushing your teeth.
Your toothpaste and toothbrush encompass abrasive elements that temporarily weaken your tooth enamel, so it’s important to allow your teeth time to recover before eating again.
The takeaway: wait at least 30 minutes before reaching for your brush after having food or acidic drinks. This is because saliva needs time to neutralise the acids in your mouth that build whilst eating.
Brushing too hard
It’s so tempting to rush through your brushing, especially if you’re running late in the mornings, or you just find brushing a little bit boring.
Rushing your brushing could mean you’re inadvertently overbrushing, which can damage teeth in two ways:
Your tooth enamel becomes weakened, changing the translucency of your tooth shade. The aesthetic consequences of this are less than ideal for your confidence.
Gum recession can occur as a result of overbrushing. When your gums recede, the weaker layer of dentine is exposed and unable to fight acid attacks as effectively as tooth enamel.
The takeaway: take a bit of extra care when you brush. If you really hate the limited dexterity that comes with using a manual brush, switch to an electric model. They don’t have to cost the earth and trust us, you’ll wish you’d made the switch sooner (they do the hard work for you). Better still, grab 15% off a sonic toothbrush by following this link, and using the code NOVA.
What did we learn?
As the saying goes, “Take care of the small things and the big things will take care of themselves”.
This is certainly applicable to your teeth. Avoiding what might seem like insignificant negative habits for your teeth will pay huge dividends when you reach your senior years. The key things to remember are:
Consistency.
Tooth loss isn’t an inevitable fact of life!
