A Day In The Life Of A Tooth

Have you ever thought about what happens to your teeth throughout the day and into the night?

Although we are not usually born with teeth, we soon get our very first set which then develop and eventually fall out, only to be replaced by our permanent adult teeth. Our Burton patients will then hopefully routinely brush their adult teeth and also have them checked by one of our dentists every six months. Apart from when we have a problem, such as a toothache, we then probably don’t spend a great deal of time thinking about them.

For today’s blog post, we thought it might be interesting to have a look at the role and the various stresses and strains that a tooth goes through on a daily basis. Our teeth may be hidden away in our mouths, but they still perform a crucial task and are very important for our health and well being!

Waking

Providing that we don’t suffer from teeth grinding, or bruxism, our teeth will have done little while we sleep. However, it is likely that potentially harmful bacteria will have multiplied in our mouth while we slept, particularly so where we suffer with “dry mouth”. This is why it is important to clean your teeth properly in the morning in order to remove bacterial build-up (plaque) and help to prevent gum disease.

Breakfast

The first task each day for your teeth is to chew our first meal of the day. This could be anything from a ‘full English’ to a piece of toast and fruit juice. There are various arguments whether you should brush your teeth before or after eating in the morning, but bear in mind that if you have brushed your teeth before you eat, anything you consume afterwards will probably stick to your teeth from that point on. So sugary jams etc are probably not the most ideal. Your fruit juice is also slightly acidic and can soften the enamel, potentially contributing to enamel erosion over time; so please try to moderate the intake of this.

Snacks

Especially if you are a light breakfast eater, you may well be craving a bit of a boost by mid morning. Too often this means a sticky bun or something sweet to perk you up a bit. This is one of the ‘red lights’ for your teeth and where possible, you should eat something more tooth friendly than a sugary treat.

Lunch

This is one of the main meals of the day for many of us. There are a large number of meals that you can choose from that are kind to your teeth. Again, try to avoid high sugar desserts. Remember that they may stick to your teeth and it is likely to be quite a long time before you clean them in the evening.

Mid afternoon snack

Another potential ‘slump’ period that may mean the consumption of a bar of chocolate or similar. Again, it is advisable to eat something less harmful to your teeth and perhaps to your waistline too. It is also not advised to snack too often. When we have eaten, our tooth enamel softens before gradually hardening again. If we eat too frequently, the enamel will not have time to harden again, making our teeth more vulnerable to damage which could lead to overly sensitive teeth and the need to see a dentist at SG Dental and Implant Centre.

Evening meal

This is a meal that we usually eat a bit more leisurely as we have more time. This is a good opportunity to have a home cooked meal rather than a takeaway or ready meal from a supermarket. By doing so, it is easier to ensure that it is not high in sugars. Although sugar may be a sweet taste, it is often included in many savoury ready meals in order to ‘enhance’ the flavour.

TV snacks

This is a prime time for snacks that can be harmful to the teeth. The good news though is that it usually means that any sugars won’t be hanging around on your teeth and gums for too long before they are brushed before bedtime.

Bedtime routine

Your teeth have undergone a lot of stress from chewing throughout the day and are likely to be  coated in sugary food deposits. This then makes it really important that you clean your teeth well before going to bed. However tired you might be, take time to brush your teeth thoroughly and also use dental floss to remove any food or bacteria that may have become trapped between your teeth. Remember that any that is missed will continue to eat away at the tooth enamel while you sleep. Make sure that when you have finished brushing your teeth, you don’t eat or drink anything afterwards apart from plain water.

Hopefully this blog provides a bit of food for thought for our Burton patients. We can forget about our teeth all too easily, but if we do, we may well pay for it later with cavities, gum disease and the like. Make sure to take good care of your teeth every day, and of course, make sure that you have a check up appointment booked with SG Dental and Implant Centre. If you don’t have one booked, please call us on 01283 845345 to arrange one as soon as possible.