Eat For Your Teeth

Now that you know what foods you should be eating, here are some foods that you should avoid. 1. Hard Candies Not only are hard candies full of sugar, but they are also sticky. These means that the sugar sits closer to the teeth for a longer amount of time, which gives the bacteria more opportunity to use the sugar as fuel to create acid. It can also cause broken teeth and restorations. 2. Ice  This one may surprise you! While ice doesn't have any sugar or even any calories, chewing on ice can also cause broken teeth and restorations. It can also weaken enamel, the strong outer layer of the teeth that cannot be repaired. 3. Citrus  Citrus may seem like a good choice because it's fruit, but citrus is high in acid. Sucking on lemons or eating lots of grapefruits and oranges can erode enamel, causing sensitivity and making it easier for cavities to penetrate the enamel. They can also irritate sores like canker sores.  4. Sticky Foods Sticky fo

This is a great recipe because it tastes amazing, it's super easy to throw together, and it has lots of the superfoods that are good for your health and your teeth! It has kale, apples, almonds, and cheese. Salad Ingredients:  6 cups chopped kale  1 red apple, chopped  2/3 cup chopped bacon  1 cup almonds, slivered or chopped  1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese  1/3 cup dried cranberries  Dressing Ingredients:  4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar  1/2 cup apple cup juice  1/4 cup olive oil  1 tablespoon Dijon mustard  2 tablespoons honey  salt and pepper to taste  Cook bacon and chop.  Combine dressing ingredients in a mason jar and shake.  Chop kale. Massage with olive oil and salt. Let sit for a couple minutes to let kale soften.  Add rest of salad ingredients and toss with dressing. Enjoy!  Tips to make this as healthy as possible:  Make sure the dressing ingredients like apple juice and Dijon mustard don't have added sugar Make sure dried cra

1. Cheese, yogurt, and other dairy products Cheese, milk, yogurt, and other dairy products are rich in calcium and protein which are vital for strong, healthy teeth. Cheese has also been shown to increase saliva production, which means that acid and sugars are being washed away from your teeth. Yogurt also contains probiotics. Probiotics have been shown to reduce caries and gum disease, because the good bacteria will take up the room that the bad bacteria usually inhabit. However, select your dairy wisely- chocolate milk and ice cream are not the same as cheese and yogurt! 2. Leafy greens   Leafy greens, like spinach and kale, are known to be wonderful for your overall health, but are also great for your teeth. They are high in vitamins and minerals, like calcium and folic acid. Calcium strengthens your teeth, while folic acid has been shown to reduce the chance of periodontal disease, especially in pregnant women.  3. Fiber-rich fruits  Fruits, like apples

So now that you know that sugar is bad for your teeth, how do you go about cutting it out? Sugar has been proven to be an addictive substance, activating the same part of your brain that coccaine does. This makes it difficult to give up, but here are some ways to help you out on your sugar-free journey! 1. Don't drink your sugar  Sugary drinks, like soda and fruit juice, are some of the worst foods for your teeth. Instead of just putting sugar in your mouth, you are washing your teeth with sugar and providing the bacteria in your mouth with tons of sugar to feast on. Try swapping out those sugary drinks for drinks like: water  water sweetened with lemon, lime, or other fresh fruits  herbal or fruit teas  coffee and tea (unsweetened of course!) 2. Swap out treats for healthy sweets  Almost all sweet deserts, like donuts, cake, cookies, etc, are loaded with sugar and provide little to none nutrition. If you are craving something sweet, instead of reaching for

We all know that sugar is bad for our teeth, but do you know why? Here's a YouTube video to help explain why:   It is not the sugar itself that causes cavities, but the bacteria already inside your mouth. When you put sugar in your mouth, it provides food that the bacteria use to grow and multiply. When these bacteria grow, they produce acid that eat away at the enamel of the teeth. As you eat more sugar and allow this acid to sit on your teeth without brushing it off, the acid can wreak even more havoc. How can you stop this process?  Cut back on your sugar intake. If you do not introduce the sugar into your mouth, the bacteria won't have anything to eat.  Cut out the time factor and don't allow the sugar to sit on your teeth. Brush and floss your teeth regularly to remove the sugar and acid produced by the bacteria.  Source:  https://www.colgate.com/en-us/oral-health/conditions/cavities/what-are-the-effects-of-sugar-on-teeth-1214

Did you know that what you eat has a major affect on your oral health?  Here are some of the ways that your diet affects your oral health. 1. Dental Caries  Dental caries, or cavities, are holes in the enamel of the tooth caused by acid and bacteria. Foods that contain carbohydrates, like sugary foods, candy, sugary drinks, baked goods, and snacks like crackers and chips are known to cause cavities.  2. Acid and Erosion  Foods like citrus, sugary drinks, fruit juice, sports drinks, and teas cause erosion of the teeth that lead to other issues like cavities and hypersensitivity.  3. Periodontal Disease  Periodontal, or gum, disease is an oral disease in which bacteria cause inflammation  of the gums and bone loss in the mouth. Periodontal disease is linked to the overall performance of the body's immune system. A poor diet, especially one low in protein, can impair the immune system, and then the body cannot fight off the bacteria in the mouth that causes g