If you’re ready for a teeth-healthy diet, look no further than this guide from Medical Arts Dentistry.
What Is The Importance Of A Teeth-Healthy Diet?
Good dental health is more than preventing cavities. It includes caring for the tissues, fibers, mineral-based surfaces, and bones that protect your teeth. Like all other structures in your body, your mouth needs the right amount of nutrients to stay strong and healthy. Good oral health requires whole, nutrient-dense foods that are low in sugar and starch. Malnutrition can affect almost every aspect of your health, including your teeth. Medical Arts Dentistry in Georgia recommends the following diet to keep your teeth healthy and strong:
- Calcium-rich foods
- Fruits and vegetables
- Protein-rich foods
- And, drink plenty of water
Which Foods Are Good For Teeth?
In most cases, foods that are good for your teeth are good for your entire body. Foods rich in calcium and other nutrients, such as low-fat cheese, skim or low-fat milk, plain yogurt, and green leafy vegetables can provide the nutrients needed for healthy teeth. Foods rich in water and fiber, such as fruits and vegetables, not only stimulate saliva production which helps wash away food particles, but can neutralize acids as well. When it comes to beverages, your best bet is always water, especially fluoridated water. Drinking water removes food particles from hard-to-reach places and promotes saliva production, keeping teeth clean and free of harmful bacteria. When fluoridated, water can help restore tooth enamel as well.
How Can Protein Improve Your Dental Health?
In addition to calcium, protein can help ensure that jaws and teeth function properly throughout your life. Proteins help repair tissue and build bone, and are an important part of bone mineral density (BMD). A healthy BMD indicates that you have enough material in your bones to support your body structure and prevent fractures or breaks. Vitamin and protein deficiency is linked to delayed tooth eruption, poor tooth formation, abnormal jaw development, bleeding gums, periodontal disease, and other health conditions such as osteoporosis. BMD can be improved by increasing dietary protein intake. Protein-rich foods like eggs, fish, meat, and poultry also help protect tooth enamel and improve bone density.
What Types of Fruits Can Make My Teeth Stronger?
The vitamin C and other antioxidants in the fruit help neutralize bacteria that sit on the tooth surface, waiting to form cavities. Fruits rich in these nutrients, such as grapefruit, oranges, strawberries, cranberries, kiwis, and apples, may enhance oral health.
Remember that eating excessive amounts of acidic fruits like citrus and tomatoes on their own can potentially damage tooth enamel. So, be sure to eat them as part of a regular meal or cook them to remove some of the acidity. Additionally, fresh fruit is always a better choice than dried fruit, which can be sticky and contain high amounts of sugar, salt, or other preservatives.
Certain Foods Can Be Bad For Your Dental Health
Foods that are high in sugar but low in nutritional value like candy, sweets, and even salty snacks such as cookies or chips are some of the worst foods for dental health. The high amounts of sugar and carbohydrates in these foods stick to your teeth, providing a feast for the bad bacteria that cause plaque and cavities. Sugary drinks like soda and fruit juice should also be avoided. Unlike when sugar sticks to the surface of your teeth when you eat sugary foods, drinking sugary beverages can wash sugar into every part of your teeth and gums, including hard-to-reach surfaces, increasing your risk of cavities.
A healthy dental diet is a great addition to good oral hygiene and regular check-up appointments to protect your teeth. At Medical Arts Dentistry, our goal is to provide our patients and their families with the very best in general, cosmetic, and restorative dentistry services. For more information about our treatments, patients in Georgetown can call 912-921-0401, or call 912-355-0605 for our Savannah location.