Airing: Sunday, February 13, 2005
Are you sending sweets to your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day? If so, you might want to treat them to a toothbrush and dental floss as well. Sugar can damage your teeth, so if you have a sweet tooth, it’s time to listen up. Here to “sweet talk” us is Dr. Steven Marsh.
Question: Why is sugar so bad for our teeth?
Answer: In your mouth, there are approximately 700 types of bacteria which break down sugar and starches.
Sugar + Bacteria = Acid
Acid + Tooth = Tooth Decay
It’s like leaving salt on a car—eventually, it will eat through.
Every time you eat sugar, an “acid attack” lasts for about 20 minutes in your mouth. That’s why brushing and flossing away food particles in your mouth is so very important after every meal.
Question: If we don't eat sugar, do we still need to brush and floss?
Answer: No.
Question: Can we outgrow cavaties?
Answer: No, its just the opposite. Certain medications and certain diseases like diabetes cause dry mouth—a decrease in saliva flow. Saliva is a cleansing agent and a buffer, if you will, to the acid attack. This condition is often exacerbated even further by the habit of sucking on hard, sugar candy to make one’s mouth less dry. This adds to tooth decay.
Also, as we age gums tend to move away from the tooth, exposing the roots. The roots are softer and therefore more susceptible to decay, and food and bacteria can lodge in the groove. Again, it’s more critical to brush as we get older.
Question: What about old fillings?
Answer: Old fillings can leak and decay can build underneath them. The decay makes the tooth soft and it can therefore fracture.
Here’s a picture of an old filling that is leaking. When fillings are taken away, the decay must be cleaned out. Here you can see that there is a fracture in the root of the tooth that was under the filling.
Old fillings can be replaced with new, natural looking fillings.
Question: Can this happen to your front teeth as well?
Answer: Yes, decay can happen in the front teeth.
I won’t sugar-coat the message. Brush and floss after eating. And call Dr. Marsh for more information.
