Food and Drink That Damage Teeth

You probably know how important your oral health is for your overall wellbeing. You are probably also aware of the importance of your diet for your dental health. It really seems the saying “You are what you eat” rings truer and truer and when it comes to dental health it’s even more important than usual. It’s time to see what parts of your diet could put your oral health at danger. Of course, most of us will never be able to eat 100% clean and eliminate all the “dangerous” foods and drinks form our diet, but it is important to know what to pay attention to and how to minimize the potential dangers.

Beware teeth, sugars and acid are here!
We all know the name of the villain when it comes to your teeth – plaque. We also know who plaque’s evil minions are – sugar and acids. These are the main culprits as far as our mouth is concerned as they are personally responsible for enamel erosion, tooth decay and pretty much all dental problems. So, let’s try to find out what categories of foods and drinks are most dangerous to our mouths and hopefully this will be a step forward a better oral health for all.

Highly Acidic Foods
When it comes to your teeth, acidic foods (foods with low Ph rating) could be extremely dangerous. Why? Whether contained in foods, or converted from sugars by your mouth's bacteria, acids can erode your teeth's enamel, causing cavities and tooth decay. A weaken enamel can also lead to a variety of problems ranging from sensitivity issues to discolored teeth.
Examples of high acidic foods: lemons, pickles, tomatoes, alcohol, coffee.
Source

Foods High in Sugar
We all know sugar is bad for our teeth, but it’s important to know why exactly. The bad bacteria in your mouth feed on sugars to create acids and cavities are an infection caused by acids. The point here is that sugars in your mouth are often the first step in the process of cavities formation.
It’s virtually impossible to eliminate all sugars from your diet, but it’s important to try to minimize sugar intake (especially refined sugar) as much as possible. It’s also crucial to not let sugar lingers in your mouth for a long time. So, brushing your teeth after meals or at least drinking lots of water is vital.
Examples of foods high in sugar: sugar (duh), soft drinks, candies, dried fruit, desserts, jams, cereal.

Sticky/Chewy Foods
An all-star villain when it comes to your teeth and gums’ health are foods that tend to stick and stay attached to and between your teeth for a very long time. The problem is such food debris turn into a plentiful energy supply for bacteria and their prolonged presence in your mouth allows bacteria to produce much more acid than normal. It’s vital to try to clean your teeth (flossing is best) as fast as possible and not leave sticky foods linger in your mouth for hours.

The Worst Drinks for Your Teeth and Gums

Soda
Nothing deserves the first spot in this list as much as soda. We all know how bad soda is for pretty much all aspects of our health and oral health is not an exception. A vast number of studies have shown the link between soda consumption and cavities.
The danger is two-fold. First, sodas are highly acidic, and the acids found in them can harm your teeth even more than sugar by striping minerals from your enamel. Hence, even sugar free (diet) sodas are still pretty bad for your teeth as they contain citric and phosphoric acid. Of course, regular, sugar-containing sodas are even worse, as they have the added danger of providing rich sugar feast for the bad bacteria in your mouth.

Sports drinks
Even though sports drinks sound healthy, they are packed with sugar and acids and the potential for cavities and erosion is very significant. A study of the erosive effect of acidic beverages on the teeth found sports drinks to be the most erosive drinks of the bunch. And that was competing with sodas and energy drinks which are among the most acidic drinks available.

Energy drinks
The same study from above found energy drinks to be the most acidic beverages, compared to sports drinks, sodas, and 100% juice and the second most erosive (second to only sports drinks). So be warned that in additions to wings, energy drinks might very well give you cavities as well.

Other than provide you with energy, food is meant to make you healthy and happy, so don’t stress too much on what you eat as long as you follow a few basic principles which will help your teeth and gums stay healthy.

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