What are the 10 Foods Damaging your Teeth?

Getting the proper nutrition to keep your body healthy is something that many of us strive for each and every day. But do we ever give a thought of “What’s healthy for our teeth”? Do we ever stop and think, “Hold on, don’t have that, it eats the enamel off my teeth”?

Well here are some foods that you should stop and think about before putting them in your mouth.

• Ice cubes. “That’s not a food” I hear you say. Very true, but it is something that we frequently chew. Chewing on these even though they are sugar free does damage the enamel on your teeth, so it’s probably better to chuck this habit.
• Anything with sugar in it is bad for your teeth. We all know this. But why is sugar so terrible? Sugar feeds plaque which of course builds up from the bacteria in our mouths and settles on our teeth.
• Hard Lollies. So apart from being full of sugar they also dissolve slowly giving bacteria more time to multiply and release their terrible acids that eat away at your teeth. Plus these guys are rock hard and you could chip or crack a tooth if you bit down too hard on one.
• Chewy Lollies. Also full of sugar so, once again, bad for the same reasons as above. But what makes these guys so nasty is that they cling to teeth, enshrouding them in, yes you guessed it, sugar. So now the bacteria in your mouth  has even more time to eat away at your teeth in the crevices between them where chewy candies always seem to get stuck.
• Any type of sticky food is not good for teeth. For example, dried fruits are healthy but can stick to teeth so it is best to rinse after you eat sticky food and should brush and floss regularly.
• Citrus Fruit. Packed full of vitamin C and goodness, how can an orange or a lemon, or the innocent grapefruit be at fault here? They have citric acid as one of their main components and this eats away at tooth enamel. So eat them for their vitamin C but brush your teeth afterwards.
• Starchy Foods. Anything starch that can and usually does get stuck between your teeth is the culprit here. Popcorn, potato chips and their friends are the enemy, and while a movie just isn’t a movie without popcorn, it might be a good idea to take the floss along and clean out those bits that get stuck before they can encourage tooth decay.
• Soft Drinks. So apart from our good old friend, sugar, these guys are full of phosphoric acid and citric acid, both of which eat away your tooth enamel.
• This one is dangerous not only because of the sugars contained in it, but also because of another little side effect, dry mouth. Anything that dries out your mouth is hazardous to your teeth and should be avoided.
• Tea and coffee are alright in moderation but excessive tea and coffee is not good for teeth as can cause drying of mouth, staining of teeth and sugar added to them is also not good for teeth.

The Good Guys

So these are the bad guys that hurt your teeth but there are also a whole host of good guys who promote heathy teeth and gums. We can also give you a few tips on how to survive and keep your teeth healthy:

1. Eat your sugary food during meals. You make more saliva then, helping to wash the acid and sugar away from your teeth.
2. Limit between meal snacks. If you need to eat rather choose fruit and then afterwards chew some sugarless gum to promote more saliva production.
3. Drink more water. After all it washes your mouth clean and some water supplies have added fluoride that helps protect your teeth.