6 THINGS THAT CAN HARM YOUR SMILE IN HOOVER, AL
Our Hoover, Alabama dentist’s office is big on preventive dentistry. In fact, we make it our mission to help you keep your mouth clean and your smile looking great all through life.
To that end, in today’s post we wanted to talk about how you can save your smile by avoiding certain things. The dentist isn’t on our list (it’s all foods and beverages)! So, do come see us every 3-6 months so that Dr. Perrigo can keep you smiling. But until we see you again, do your best to steer clear of the following…
Ice
Chewing ice can badly damage your teeth. Besides the chance of breaking a tooth, crunching ice also wears down the enamel of your teeth. This could lead to hot/cold sensitivity and cavities. It can also create problems for your gums. It isn’t worth it!
Soda Pop
This isn’t the first time you’ve heard this, but here we go again! With as much sugar as a bottle of regular soda contains, it is not the best choice for your teeth. Many sodas also contain caramel and fructose, which is basically sugar that coats and sticks to your teeth.
Don’t be fooled by diet sodas either. Even though diet soda doesn’t have “sugar,” all soda is high in acidity. That acid can erode your enamel, making cavities much more likely to appear.
Popcorn
Popcorn is more or less a healthy food option but you still need to be mindful when consuming it. Here’s our reasoning: pieces of popcorn can get stuck between your teeth, which is where harmful bacteria is lurking. The bacteria can eat the tiny parts of popcorn stuck there, increasing your risk of tooth decay and gum disease. But there’s also always a possibility that you will bite into an unpopped kernel which is hard enough to damage or break your teeth. At Perrigo Dental Care, we are prepared for dental emergencies, but we’d rather help you avoid them to begin with.
Coffee
Sure, coffee can really get you going in the morning, but it slowly stains your teeth over time, turning your once pearly whites into a brown-yellow color. Even worse, most coffee drinks have so much sugar in them, they’re as bad for your teeth as a fountain soda!
Alcohol
While it can be fun to hit an Alabama happy hour with friends, there is a price to pay, and we aren’t talking about hangovers or bad decisions! The primary problem we have with alcoholic drinks is that they dry out your mouth.
While drinking, your mouth won’t produce enough saliva, which you need to help wash away particles of food or drink from your teeth and gums.
Also, some alcoholic drinks have a lot of sugar making them very bad for your teeth. And, get this, if red wine is your drink of choice, you will also be staining your teeth.
Sports Drinks
Gatorade, along with other sports drinks, is designed to be consumed only after you’ve been sweating a lot. This is why they contain carbohydrates, which is really just another form of sugar. Gatorade might not taste as sweet as pop, but it can still do the same damage to your teeth. In this sort of situation, water is always your best bet anyway.
Keep Us In The Loop!
Making good decisions will help save your smile in the end. The best decision you can make for your dental health is to keep Perrigo Dental Care in the loop. Our preventive program will give you lots to smile about.
Go ahead and schedule your next appointment in our Hoover, AL dentist’s office today!