Breaking bad habits could be difficult. Twisting one’s hair, sucking one’s thumb, or picking one’s nose are only a few examples of annoying habits that some people may have difficulty breaking.
In some cases, you may have developed habits you didn’t know could cause damage to your teeth. It’s important to identify these bad habits so they could be avoided. Although the list is long, some of the habits you may not know could destroy your teeth are the following.
1. Eating Food Rich In Sugar
Sugar may cause damage to the teeth. After eating food rich in sugar, the bacteria found in the mouth could use the sugar to produce acids that could attack and hurt your tooth enamel, the hard surface of your teeth. This may leave unsightly holes in your teeth and cause cavities.
Refined sugars, such as those found in processed food, are said to be extremely harmful to your teeth. Also, sweetened dry fruits, including both flavored and nonflavored, have high sugar content and should therefore be avoided. You can check here for more ideas on what types of food could cause damage to your teeth.
2. Drinking Acidic Beverages
Beverages could affect your teeth to a great extent, although it’s the total acidity that mainly causes the effect. Anything that measures 5.5 or less on the pH scale is acidic. Acidic meals and drinks could lower the tooth enamel’s resistance, exposing the teeth to cavity risk, like when you put acidic beverages in your mouth.
When making a list of beverages that may damage your teeth, you may want to include carbonated drinks like soda and energy drinks. Meanwhile, white wine is said to be more acidic than red wine and hence more effective in eroding your enamel, making you more prone to tooth stains and discoloration.
Coffee is slightly acidic, about 5.0 on the pH scale. There are, however, some claims that coffee may be beneficial to your teeth. According to a study, drinking coffee without any additives may help prevent the development of cavities. Therefore, if you’re thinking about dental health, it may be preferable to enjoy your coffee without adding sugar.
3. Using Teeth As Tools
The idea of using your teeth as tools would sometimes come across your mind without even realizing it. You might use your teeth to open a soda can, pick up a pen, tear or open a bag of chips, carry items, or cut clothing tags. For some, these activities become second nature over time. But these bad habits may need to be avoided as they could cause severe dental problems.
Using your teeth as tools is a bad habit that may destroy them fast. This is because you’d wear down the enamel of your teeth. Teeth are designed for chewing and biting food, so using the teeth for other nonfood purposes without dental work may ask for trouble.
4. Nail-Biting
Some dental problems happen among people who bite their nails. Continually tearing off your fingernails with the use of your teeth could chip your front tooth or damage the enamel. What’s worse is your teeth could even break or fall out. The dirt and germs that you may transfer from your fingernails to your mouth when nail-biting could even lead to gum disease, like gingivitis.
5. Tooth Grinding
Another bad habit that could cause teeth and gum damage is habitual tooth grinding or bruxism. People sometimes grind their teeth when stressed, angry, anxious, or nervous or even when they’re just plain bored. Excessive tooth grinding could wear away the tooth enamel in the long term or create chips or cracks in the tooth, but this doesn’t stop there. Bruxism could also be a cause of gum recession due to the pressure placed on the gums by the grinding motion of the teeth.
6. Nibbling Nonfood Items
While the teeth are intended for chewing, they’re not built to chew on anything. Nibbling pens, ice chips, match sticks, or any nonfood items could potentially harm the teeth and place undue stress on the jaw joint. Additionally, the things you nibble may be contaminated with microorganisms, which if consumed might cause illness.
7. Smoking
When smoking, you expose your teeth to nicotine. As a result, discoloration of the teeth and bad breath are likely to occur. People who smoke are also thought to have increased production of bacterial plaque that could lead to gum disease, which is a common cause of tooth loss.
Conclusion
The importance of dental care should be self-evident. One of the things that could affect your health is your teeth. You need to ensure you maintain healthy teeth by avoiding the habits you didn’t know could destroy your teeth. It’s also strongly recommended to visit your dentist regularly and when necessary, in addition to doing regular teeth cleaning, to ensure optimum dental health.
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