Enamel Erosion Concerns - How To Assist Your Teeth With Remineralization

If you are recovering from an eating disorder, if you have recently been treated for cancer, or if you have an extreme anxiety disorder, then you have likely dealt with a great deal of vomiting. Unfortunately, this has allowed stomach acids to come into contact with your teeth. The acids within the fluid have a pH between 1.5 and 3.5, and this makes them strong enough to eat through the dental enamel. The erosion of the enamel can cause extreme sensitivities and pain, and it can make you susceptible to cavities. Your dentist can treat the erosion for you, and you can also do the following things to make sure that your body can remineralize your teeth to strengthen them.

Stay Away From Acidic Foods

If the dental enamel across your teeth has eroded significantly, then this means that there are large openings within the enamel that expose the tooth dentin. When you consume fluoride, calcium, and vitamin D, the holes are slowly filled in during a process called remineralization. Remineralization can help to strengthen the dental enamel, but this only occurs if minerals are not lost at the same rate that they are replaced. Acidic foods can cause mineral loss, so make sure to stay away from these foods.

If you commonly eat acidic foods, then consider alternatives that will help to replace them until your teeth no longer feel sensitive. If you regularly consume sodas, fruit drinks, and other beverages that contain artificial sweeteners, then consider switching to drinks that contain raw sugar, honey, or stevia. Avoid cranberries, blackberries, prunes, and cherries, and eat bananas, peaches, kiwis, apples, and papayas instead. Also, try to substitute beef and pork for fish and turkey. Consume green tea instead of coffee and eat almonds, asparagus, carrots, squash, broccoli, and spinach as well.

Try Not to Snack

Whenever you consume a meal or snack, the bacteria that naturally live on your teeth and gums start to feed on the sugars and carbohydrates that have been left behind. Once the bacteria start to feed, they release acidic byproducts that fill the mouth. These acids can eat away at the dental enamel in the same way that acidic foods and stomach fluids can. This can greatly limit the amount of remineralization that can take place. You can prevent further enamel damage by making sure not to snack all throughout the day.  

If you do snack, then make sure to eat foods that contain no sugar or carbohydrates. Consider eating a salad or munching on carrots, celery sticks, mushrooms, bell peppers, or radishes. You can eat eggs, greek yogurt, cottage cheese, tofu, flax seeds, and almonds as well. Along with eating sugar free snacks, make sure to brush your teeth after breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals. This will greatly reduce the amount of acid the bacteria in your mouth can produce.

Increase Saliva Production

The saliva in your mouth is made up of water, mucus, and enzymes. This fluid has a number of different functions.  It breaks down your food, clears food particles out of your mouth, rinses away bacteria, and controls the pH balance of your mouth.  This means that an abundance of saliva can successfully keep acids away from your teeth.  To keep your mouth as alkaline as possible, make sure that your mouth is producing as much saliva as it can.

One of the best ways to force your salivary glands to produce more fluids is to chew on sugar free gum throughout the day. The chewing motion signals to the glands that fluid is needed and saliva is then produced. Sour foods can produce the same salivary reaction, so consider sucking on sugar free sour candies as well.

If you have a medical issue that has caused you to vomit a great deal in the past, then you may notice that your teeth are sensitive. This occurs when the dental enamel becomes eroded by your stomach fluids. The natural remineralization process can strengthen the enamel over time. You can help the process along by following the tips above, and don't forget your annual visit to your local dentist, at a place like Schererville Family Dentistry, PC.