5 Ways You’re Harming Your Teeth

Even if you brush and floss everyday, there are still many things that cause damage to your smile. At our dental office in Erdenheim, we’re all about keeping teeth healthy and being dedicated to educating our patients on all the ways to keep their mouths in tip-top shape, as well as things that can be harmful.

1. Ice, Ice, Baby

Ice is a great way to cool a drink or nurse an injury back to health, but it’s not so helpful to your smile. They’re hard, really hard, and if crunched can cause chips. Once there are chips, bacteria can settle into these little nooks and cause decay. If not fixed, chips can turn into severe cracks and even cause pieces of teeth to fall off.

2. Side to Side

While we always encourage our patients to brush twice a day and floss once a day, we want to make sure they all know the proper way to brush. It’s best to use small, gentle circles to ensure you’re treating your enamel with the best of care. If a back and forth, side to side technique is used, it can be harsh on enamel and cause scratches.

3. Run!

Running and other forms of cardiovascular exercise are great for a healthy heart and healthy body. But recent research also shows a link between endurance cardio workouts and tooth decay. One explanation to this is during intense cardio, saliva production is greatly decreased. Saliva naturally washes away dangerous acid and bacteria that can lead to decay. Try chewing sugar-free gum during workouts.

4. Feel the Burn

Heartburn that is. Acid reflux is never enjoyable, but it can cause serious damage to your teeth. Acid from the stomach can creep up into the mouth and act just like acid from soda or sugar-loaded sports drinks. However, stomach acid tends to be more potent and can more easily dissolve enamel.

5. Lemonade

Lemonade is packed full of acid as well as sugar, a lethal combination for tooth health. Bacteria found in the mouth feeds on the sugar while the acid eats away at tooth enamel, making your teeth a prime spot for decay to flourish. Choose water instead.

Avoiding these damaging foods and activities, or at least counteracting those that are good for you with something good for your smile, can do wonders for the health of your mouth. And as always, keeping up with regular appointments at our Erdenheim dental office is the best prevention.

Serving patients from Erdenheim, Flourtown, and Chestnut Hill.

About The Author

Dr. Angela M. Stout

Dr. Angela M. Stout specializes in pediatric, adolescent, and special needs dentistry, and is certified in oral sedation. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry and a Fellow at the American College of Dentists and the International College of Dentists. Aside from being a dentist, she is also a clinical assistant professor and lecturer.

Read The Full Bio