Fruit juice - The culprit causes tooth damage

Caroline Daniel is proud that she adheres to a healthy diet and practices regularly. She often drinks cola instead of alcohol and drinks more juice than tea and coffee. But then, two years ago, she began to suffer from severe toothache.

'Just a sip of cold orange juice is enough to create a sharp pain from teeth to gums. And any kind of cold drink causes the same situation. It was so painful that I had to cry out, 'said Mrs. Crroline (living in Epsom, Surrey, England).

Six months later, the toothache was getting worse and Caroline was forced to go to the dentist. The dentist said that her dental caries were serious. Enamel has been 'washed away' almost and deep holes have been eaten into nerves, any hot or cold can penetrate into these pits causing pain.

Mrs. Caroline was amazed at the doctor's conclusion because she worked hard to brush her teeth. The dentist explains that juice and carbonated drinks (3 cups of orange juice a day and occasionally drinks cola is the culprit).

'Sugar and acid in fruit juice attack tooth enamel and carbonated drinks are similar. I'm really surprised about this because I think they're good for health, ' Caroline expressed.

In addition, an equally important reason makes Caroline's tooth decay worse than brushing her teeth immediately after drinking fruit juice. Because tooth enamel is very weak at the moment, it takes 1 hour to restore its firmness.

Eradication of tooth enamel - Common disease in children under 5 years old

In fact, tooth enamel erosion is becoming more and more a common problem. Unlike cavities, which are bacteria that attack a number of positions in the teeth, tooth enamel erosion is caused by acid.

There are several causes of tooth enamel erosion, such as due to acid reflux (natural acid in the stomach) and use of abrasive toothpaste. However, the culprit is acid in food (juice and carbonated drinks). Last year in the US research shows that drinking more juice every day will be more harmful to tooth enamel than whitening your teeth.

'Acid in water is so strong that it can' wash away 'enamel , ' said lead researcher Dr YanFang Ren, an oral specialist, University of Rochester.

Moreover, this danger often starts very early, when young. Survey of National Dental Health Center shows that while the number of tooth decay cases today is less than 2 decades ago, but the number of children under 5 years old lost their teeth due to the erosion of enamel. .

"Parents think they are doing the best for their children by giving them healthy drinks and the acids in these drinks have worn away enamel quickly ," Dr. Ren said.

Ways to limit the erosion of tooth enamel from food

- If you want to drink orange juice in the morning, wait 1 hour after drinking and brush your teeth.

- Can drink and eat with acidic drinks or straws.

- Chewing gum also helps increase saliva production, protect tooth enamel.

- Finish the meal with milk or cheese, this food has the ability to neutralize acid.