Why? Because everything from consuming sports drinks to breathing through your mouth can create the perfect storm for enamel damage. Over time, this can lead to tooth sensitivity, discoloration, and even cavities, issues that can sideline your smile.

Dental Erosion Cause #1: Diet & Nutrition

Sports drinks and energy gels might be the fuel you need to perform, but they’re often packed with acids and sugars. Even healthy foods like fruit smoothies or protein bars can be surprisingly acidic (and high in sugar). Acids soften tooth enamel and make it easier for erosion to occur, while sugar feeds decay. If you frequently sip or snack on these throughout the day to keep your energy up, your teeth are in constant contact with acid, which accelerates enamel wear.

Prevention Tip: Use a straw when consuming acidic or sugary products (to keep them from contact with your teeth), and wait at least 30 minutes before brushing to avoid damaging softened enamel. Additionally, opt for water or low-acid electrolyte replacements whenever possible.

Dental Erosion Cause #2: Dehydration and Reduced Saliva

When you’re training hard, it’s easy to become dehydrated, which is bad news for your whole body—including your mouth. Saliva plays an essential role in neutralizing acids and protecting your tooth enamel. When saliva production drops due to dehydration or heavy mouth breathing during exertion, acid erosion can occur unchecked. Dry mouth also increases the risk of bacterial buildup, further increasing your potential for dental damage.

Prevention Tip: Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water before, during, and after workouts. If dry mouth persists, try chewing sugar-free gum or using mouth rinses designed to stimulate your saliva flow.

Better Dental Health For the Win

Protect your smile like you protect your winning streak: stay hydrated, choose your fuel wisely, and schedule regular dental checkups to keep your teeth as strong as your game.

The post Why Are Athletes at Higher Risk for Dental Erosion? Understand the Causes & Tips on How to Prevent It appeared first on Your Dental Health Resource.

However, up to 25% of patients with acid reflux will have no symptoms. Dentists are often the first professionals to come into contact with acid reflux, as enamel erosion on the back molars may be a sign of the presence of stomach acid in the oral cavity.

How does acid reflux affect the oral cavity? Here’s how GERD can contribute to tooth decay.

Enamel Loss Increases Risk of Cavities

Tooth enamel is the hardest substance in the human body, but it’s no match for stomach acid, which is so strong it can actually dissolve razor blades!

When tooth enamel is lost due to erosion from harsh acids or bacteria, it can’t be replaced. Loss of tooth enamel increases your risk of tooth decay. The harsh stomach acids that leak into the esophagus in people with GERD can eventually make their way up the esophagus and into the mouth. These acids are extremely corrosive to tooth enamel.

This type of damage usually happens on the surface of the back molars on the lower jaw, which are the closest teeth to the back of your throat and therefore the most likely to experience the harmful effects of stomach acid.

Dry Mouth May Exacerbate Tooth Decay

Patients with acid reflux often experience dry mouth on account of the traces of acid that can be present in the oral cavity.

Dry mouth in itself can cause an upset in the balance of oral bacteria and contribute to tooth decay; dry mouth combined with GERD can quickly work to damage tooth enamel and wear away the surface of the back molars among other teeth.

Other symptoms of acid reflux include chronic bad breath or a persistent bad taste in your mouth. Both of these can be symptoms of gum disease as well, so discovering the cause of these symptoms with your dentist is essential.

How to Stop Tooth Decay from Acid Reflux

People with acid reflux may need to try harder to avoid foods that can aggravate tooth decay, such as sugar. Combining sugar with harmful stomach acids in the mouth can be detrimental to your smile.

In addition, people with acid reflux may also experience a flare of symptoms with foods such as tomatoes and citrus fruits; both of these are acidic and can worsen the effect of GERD on your smile.

Make your dentist aware of your acid reflux and ask him or her how often you should come in. You may need to come in more often in order to keep your teeth healthy and prevent damage from acid reflux.

Managing your acid reflux can help you protect both your smile and your body from this harmful condition!

Acid reflux absolutely has the potential to contribute to tooth decay. Visiting your dentist can help you catch acid reflux early in the event that you are asymptomatic and prevent harm to your teeth. Make an appointment with your dentist today if you suspect you’re suffering from GERD!

The post Does Acid Reflux Contribute to Tooth Decay? appeared first on Your Dental Health Resource.