February and March are such great times of the year in Adelaide with so many events, festivals and entertaining. These often are celebrated with beverages such as soft drinks with lemon or lime to jazz them up, power drinks, electrolytic drinks, cocktails, sangria, sparklings, rose, red, moscato, white, beer, ale, cider and all either sweet or dry and nearly always acidic.
Teeth and alcohol do have some issues. Most alcohols are acidic and the acid can remove the surface layers of enamel from teeth and can erode exposed root surface areas. Recommendations for wine makers and professional wine tasters have been in use for almost a decade in relation to acidity and their teeth. The recommendation is to use a remineralising creme regularly to prevent loss of tooth structure. We have the GC products containing the peptide complex CPP-ACP (casein phosphopeptide amorphous calcium phosphate) at the clinic available for purchase to assist in remineralising teeth from acid erosion and to help prevent further erosion. This product, called Tooth Mousse and Tooth Mousse Plus (added Fluoride) is derived from milk protein. They come in a variety of flavours.
Sugary drinks will always cause issues with teeth and once you add in the acid the issues are compounded. Soft drinks have a significant amount of sugar in them which sticks around the teeth creating an environment that the oral bad bacteria love. The stickiness increases the depth of the plaque on the teeth changing the environment, so that the dynamic effect of the calcium and fluoride molecules going in and out of teeth to going more out and in. Acids increase the process so more tooth structure demineralizes and doesn’t remineralise again. When it doesn’t remineralise it creates a cavity that the oral bad bacteria can enter, the sugars feed them and they create further demineralization of the tooth and a bigger cavity. The more frequent the sugar and acid are in the same place the more likelihood of a cavity occurring. Dr Stone always tells the children that her most hated sugary thing is a lollipop, because they stay in the mouth for 45 mins bathing the teeth in sugar.
To help prevent this loss of tooth structure it is best not to keep sipping sugary, acidic drinks; use a straw so they don’t bath the teeth; use tooth mousse if required; see your dentist regularly for xrays of the areas between your teeth where the tooth structure is more vulnerable; make sure you floss and brush effectively especially prior to bed and no sugar and acid after brushing before bed.
See you in the clinic! The Victoria Park Dental Care team.
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