Is Tooth Enamel Loss Really Permanent?
Keep it Healthy
Keep it Healthy
Your tooth enamel is pretty tough and it has to be. It’s under constant assault from foods and drinks, not to mention the bacteria that grows in between brushing. Plus, every time you drink a soft drink or eat something sugary, it makes your enamel weaker. And that’s a problem because your enamel defends your teeth against decay, and when it gets damaged you’ll probably end up having to make an emergency trip to an after hours dentist. If you want to avoid that, here’s what you need to know about this essential part of your teeth.
What is Enamel?
Enamel is the hard coating over the softer parts of your teeth. It’s made primarily of a mix of minerals, and is the hardest substance in the body, harder even than your bones. However, once your enamel is damaged or worn away, it doesn’t grow back. Though your dentist can repair small lesions that weaken enamel, once it’s gone you’re going to have serious problems with your teeth for the rest of your life.
There are a number of things that can damage the enamel on your teeth. The most problematic are:
Soft drinks, because the high sugar content eats away at the enamel and weakens it overall.
Sugary foods, which have the same effect as soft drinks.
Certain medications can soften the enamel.
Conditions like Bruxism or teeth grinding, because the constant motion wears the enamel away.
Diseases like Acid Reflux Disease, where stomach acids rise from the gut and can wear away the teeth.
Genetics.
How to Tell if Your Enamel is Worn
It’s usually pretty easy to tell if your enamel has been damaged or worn away in any areas. With the enamel gone, the soft inner surfaces of your teeth will be exposed to the open air and to any food and drink that you consume. This means that the affected teeth will become discoloured or stained more easily. Your teeth will also become more sensitive to hot and cold foods or drinks.
Enamel is very strong, which is why your teeth are fairly hard to break. But when the enamel wears away, you will also notice that your teeth chip or break more easily. This is why you need to visit your dentist if you notice any changes in your teeth. Because once your teeth start to break, fixing the problem becomes much more difficult.
Strengthening and Repairing Enamel
Once your enamel is gone, it can’t be replaced. However, if you know ahead of time that your enamel is thinning then you can take steps to try and boost its health. That’s one reason why you need to make regular trips to the dentist for check-ups, because they’ll be able to tell you if you have a problem with your enamel.
Products that contain fluoride can be very helpful in keeping your enamel strong. Fluoride acts as a barrier between food and drinks and your enamel, preventing damage or degradation. You can also find toothpastes that contain minerals that will help to strength enamel weak spots by inundating them with calcium. This will help prevent further damage to the enamel and hopefully prevent it from being completely worn away from your tooth or teeth.
How to Prevent Enamel Loss
You can’t replace enamel that’s been lost, that’s why the best strategy to preserve your oral health is to avoid things that cause damage. So if you grind your teeth, talk to your dentist about a mouth guard. Try to avoid medications such as aspirin which cause enamel erosion. Avoid sugary foods and drinks as much as possible. And most of all, take a proactive role in your oral health. This means informing yourself about the health of your enamel and talking to your dentist about any issues before they become serious problems.
Emergency Dentist Sydney Says:
If you have a dental emergency, contact our Emergency Dentist in Sydney. Our caring and expert staff are available 24 hours a day to help you with all your emergency dental needs.
5 Effective Ways to Overhaul Your Oral Hygiene Routine
It's important that your oral health routine focus on more than just the colour of your teeth...
Today
While most of us aspire to a celebrity-worthy pearly white smile, and will often spend a small fortune on whitening toothpastes, kits and treatments to achieve one, we can tend to overlook other important aspects of oral care and that's a big mistake. After all, what's the point in having pearly white gnashers if you also have rather rancid breath, inflamed gums, and or the beginnings of cavities lurking.
It's important that your oral health routine focus on more than just the colour of your teeth. Here are five very easy to implement changes you can make to your oral hygiene routine today to get a healthier smile, and not just a whiter one.
1. Practice Some Tongue Care
Your tongue is the single largest source of bacteria in your mouth, meaning it's a big contributor to bad breath and other oral nasties. And yet when most people clean their teeth they fail to clean their tongue, and it's very important to do so.
Yes, we know it sounds a bit weird but it's not a hard habit to get into. Some toothbrushes do come with a built-in tongue cleaner on the back, or you can buy an inexpensive tongue scraper. Either tool will strip your tongue of the excess gunk that builds up, but for an even better result follow up a scraping with a real brush of the tongue with toothbrush and toothpaste as well.
2. Forget the Hipster Toothpastes
Chances are your Mum and Dad have had you brushing with a fluoride toothpaste since you were a kid. But perhaps recently you've been noticing a number of new 'all-natural' toothpastes have been appearing that claim to do a better job at maintaining oral health than their traditional fluoride enhanced counterparts.
The simple fact is that they don't though. And while they may have cool packaging and funky, fun sounding flavours, we really do recommend sticking with the fluoride paste you grew up with. Fluoride guards your teeth from plaque and decay by strengthening the enamel and it's still a must in any effective oral hygiene routine.
3. Keep on Flossing
There's been a big debate of late over whether or not people really need to floss. It was opened up after a report was published that claimed research had shown that flossing had been overrated and that brushing might be enough.
Almost every dentist disagrees, but you don't even have to take their word for it. Even the fanciest, priciest toothbrush can't get all those little bits of food that get stuck between your teeth out, and if they stay where they are they'll begin to rot, leading to bad breath at best and cavities and infection at worst. Since flossing is a very effective way to get rid of between the teeth gunk on a daily basis to keep on using it really is just common sense.
4. Stay Hydrated
Bad breath - especially that rather potent 'morning breath' most of us are familiar with is, in large part, due to dehydration. When you sleep the production of cleansing saliva is decreased, as is the case when you are super-thirsty.
5. Don't Ditch Your Dental Appointments
Yes, we know, you're busy. And you really don't like going to the dentist. And because you do brush and floss every day like a good boy or girl you think your teeth are in pretty good shape, so it's probably OK to skip a check up this time around. But, no, it's really not.
In addition to that great deep cleaning you'll get, your dentist, as an expert in gum health as well, will be able to spot the signs of periodontal disease that it's harder for you to notice (until pain, swelling and/or infection sets in) and address it before it can cause any lasting damage. And although it sounds a bit morbid to mention it often the only way an oral cancer is diagnosed is after its symptoms are spotted by an eagle-eyed dentist.
The Emergency Dentist Says:
Good oral hygiene is about more than the shade of pearly white you can achieve with your 'brightening' toothpaste. An attractive mouth is one that is healthy as well as good looking, something that the tips we've shared here, really will help you achieve.
Dental Care 101: Prevention Tip
Let's get started with a few dental hygiene prevention tips...
Prevention Is Your Best Friend: Here's Our TOP 10 List
Every person's smile is unique and so is their dental care requirements. However, there a few things we can all do, from a young age, to ensure we keep the teeth we have and keep them healthy. Let's get started with a few dental hygiene prevention tips:
Our top tips:
Brush Regular!It's simple but lots of us don't do this most simplest of activities. So, brush twice a day, after meals where possible.
Floss Regular. Twice a day to be exact! A slow sawing motion is the best way to do it. If you're not sure how to do it ask your Dentist at your next visit. If you are a regular 'flosser' you should check your technique at your next check-up, just in case. For detailed info on how to floss right check out our flossing tips page (link to come).
Choose The Right Toothbrush For You. The toothbrush you choose should have a head small enough so that you can reach behind your back teeth. The bristles should also be soft, these will be kinder to your gums long term.
Right. The average adult should brush their teeth for about 3 minutes and combine a technique of up and down on teeth surfaces and soft circular motion where your teeth meet your gums. Anything shorter and you're probably not paying enough attention to where and how you're brushing. If you brush longer than 3 minutes you may be causing gum or plaque damage, so keep it close to 3 minutes. For detailed instructions on how to brush right check out our brushing tips page (link to come).
Limit Acidic Foods & Drinks. These include things like soft drink or fizzie drinks, cordials and fruit juices. The acidic levels in these manufactured foods and drinks are concentrated and above the desired standard levels. They will dissolve the minerals contained in the enamel that coats and protects your teeth, leading to cavities (holes).
Limit Sugary Foods. These include things like lollies and candies, sweeteners, dried fruits, cakes, jams, some cereals and sauces. The bacteria in dental plaque change sugars in to acids and we all know what that does.
Protect Teeth From Injury. Always wear a mouthguard or full-face helmet when playing any contact sports.
Save Dislodged Teeth. Should your teeth be knocked out while playing sport or in an altercation or accident, seek medical advice immediately. Once you have done this you should wrap the tooth in plastic or place it in a container of milk until you are able to seek medical advice.
Use Your Teeth To Chew! Doing things like cracking nuts, opening bottles by popping off the lid with your teeth, or sucking on a hard boiled lollies or candies can crack or chip your teeth. These may not be evident or noticeable at the time they occur but will develop in to bigger problems with time.
Use A Fluoridated Toothpaste. Fluoride hardens your tooth enamel and helps greatly to reduce the risk of tooth decay.
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