Have you ever suffered from extreme tooth sensitivity before or felt as if your teeth are slowly beginning to wear away? If so, you may have been under the effects of what is commonly known as dental erosion. Dental erosion is a common oral health condition in which harmful acids begin to wear down your tooth enamel. Dental damage in the form of dental erosion often leads to cavities and serious oral health issues with your teeth. To help protect your smile, it is important to understand the causes of dental erosion and how to properly treat it.
To keep your smile safe from the risk of dental erosion, it is important to understand its causes. Acid reflux disease is a known contributor to dental erosion. In addition, the foods and drinks you eat can dramatically increase your risk for the presence of enamel wear. This includes the consumption of products and substances such as sugars and starches, which can be converted into harmful acids by plaque buildup in your mouth. Furthermore, medications, genetic dispositions, and environmental factors can contribute to the presence of dry mouth.
Dry mouth occurs when there is a lack of saliva in your mouth. This can be extremely detrimental to your health because saliva is essential for keeping your smile safe from harmful acids that seek to destroy your tooth enamel. Saliva can help wash away food debris, neutralize harmful acids in your mouth, and provide disease-fighting substances for your oral health care. In order to produce more saliva, consider chewing sugarless gum after meals or try using mouthwash.
In addition, it is important to maintain effective oral health care cleaning techniques such as brushing and flossing your teeth on a daily basis. Ideally, you should use a soft-bristled toothbrush that has non-abrasive toothpaste twice a day to keep your smile safe. In addition, to be sure to clean between your teeth with a shred-resistant dental floss.
Restore your oral health to the top of the hall of shining smiles with dental erosion prevention treatments. If you are in need of dental erosion prevention treatments from our team at Park Dental of Edmonds & Snohomish at our dentist office in Snohomish, Washington, please contact us at 360-568-2153 to schedule an appointment or consultation with Dr. Kevin Park.
