Avoid these Items to Protect Your Teeth and Gums
We’ve all been spending a lot more time eating these days. Often, we spend a lot of time eating things that aren’t good for us. You may have thought about watching your weight, but have you thought about watching out for your teeth and gums? Here are some foods you might want to avoid to keep your teeth and gums healthy.
What Foods Should I Avoid?
The number one food on your list of things to avoid is sugar, especially refined sugar. Sugar is the primary cause of tooth decay and gum disease. While you may be concerned about other foods harming your teeth and gums, sugar is a huge problem. Sugar enables the bacteria that is constantly in your mouth to grow and populate. Without proper brushing and flossing, sugar gives your mouth bacteria all of the fuel it needs to eat away at your teeth. Over time, you can develop both cavities and gum disease. If you have to indulge your sweet tooth every once in a while, make sure that you are brushing and flossing immediately after you eat sugar.
There are some sugar products that are more harmful than others. If you love caramels, taffy, toffee, or other sticky, sugary foods, it is even more important to brush and floss properly. Be sure that you use proper dental hygiene because sticky chewy, sugary foods are more difficult to get out of your mouth with absentminded brushing, which means they can stay on your teeth and cause more trouble.
Also, be sure that foods that are highly acidic, such as citrus, peppers, tomatoes, soft drinks, caffeine, and alcohol. Brushing after consumption of these foods will lessen the chances they will eat away at your tooth enamel.
When you are ready to have some help protecting your valuable teeth and gums, you need to come and see us. We’re located at 121 East 60th Street, New York City, New York 10022. You can call us to schedule a visit at 212. 752.7188.