How to prevent cavities

The traditional thinking behind cavities

The traditional thinking behind cavities all involved plaque. Plaque is the stuff left behind after eating, basically food and bacteria that forms a film on top of your teeth after eating. The thinking was that if you remove this plaque properly then you will not get cavities.

What has changed since then?

The new thinking behind cavities focuses on the pH of the mouth. Cavities can only happen in the mouth when it gets to a certain pH - more acidic environment means more chances of cavities happening. Therefore, cavity prevention is centered on decreasing the acidity of the mouth and saliva.

Things you can do to prevent cavities

Below are some things to get more of and things to avoid

Foods to avoid or get less of

• Pop and fruit juice - I think most people know that pop is bad for your teeth. However, fruit juices can be just as bad due to their acid and sugar content.
• Energy drinks, sports drinks - Red bull, Gatorade, and similar energy/sports drinks are somtimes more acidic than pop and cause similar damage to teeth.
• Coffee with either sugar or cream
• Fruit - Although Fruits are good for your body, a lot of fruits such as oranges can be very acidic and bad for your teeth. Bananas and Apples tend to be less acidic.

Try changing how you have these foods/drinks

If you can't avoid the foods/drinks listed above, you could try changing how you have them. The goal is to lessen the time that your teeth are exposed to an acidic environment. So for example, you could have fruit right after a meal instead of snacking in between meals. This is because after any meal, the acid leavels in your mouth are elevated. In addition, rinsing with water after having anything acidic would be best, then wait 30 minutes to 1 hour before brushing to let your saliva neutralize the acid naturally. Brushing right after a meal can damage the teeth more.

Try these anti cavity products

Some products can help in tipping the balance in your mouth towards remineralization.

• Xylitol - Xylitol has been proven to decrease acid levels in your mouth and also in decreasing bacteria that causes acid and cavities. They can be used instead of sugar in coffee and also added to water to sip throughout the day. Approximately 6g of xylitol is proven to be the best.
• Clinpro 5000 - This toothpaste made by 3M contains calcium triphosphate, and higher concentration of fluoride which can help remineralize teeth and also decrease demineralization.
• Baking soda - baking soda is a very gentle abrasive, much gentler than some whitening toothpastes on the market. They can help in neutralizing acid.
• Weak bleaching products in trays - If you've had custom bleaching trays made by your dentist, you could use 10% carbamide peroxide (a weak whitening bleaching agent) to decrease the cavity causing bacteria's ability to colonize around teeth. Research has shown that a one week application of 10% carbamide peroxide nightly could dramatically lower cavity rates, plus it will whiten teeth as a side effect. 10% carbamide peroxide is a low concentration bleaching agent so the complication of sensitivity is fairly low.