When related to health care and personal hygiene, you know that there are some things to do, and some things to avoid. But when it comes to taking care of your teeth, the Don’ts are even more important than the Do’s!Our Doctors who are experts in Cosmetic Dentistry in Lake Worth FL, recommend avoiding the following 9 habits, which can definitely harm your teeth.
- Drinking Soda, and Sports Drinks: These beverages have an excess amount of sugar in them, leaving an acidic coat on your teeth enamel and feeding the bacteria that cause cavities. This can surely affect your teeth, and, if continued longer, can harm your overall oral health.Avoiding highly concentrated sugary drinks and replacing them with sugar-free drinks are an option to avoid damaging your teeth enamel.
- Chewing or Smoking Tobacco: Whether causing stained teeth or serious gum-related diseases, tobacco is one of the leading causes of bad dental hygiene. Smoking can cause periodontal disease and can even result in tooth decay or lost teeth.Though it can be hard, quitting tobacco is the only option to prevent oral health issues.
- Nail-Biting and Chewing ice, pencils, etc: Habits like these can cause teeth to crack or even break, leaving irritated soft tissue which can become a serious problem.Quitting these habits can be a challenge but is the only way to avoid major oral problems in the future.
- Eating Sugary Treats: Sugary treats are always enemies for the teeth, period!
- Brushing or Flossing Too Hard: The toothbrush is the main reason here. Brushing with a hard toothbrush can certainly irritate the gum, and can often cause gum bleeding. Also, scrubbing teeth roughly can cause irritate the gums.For most people, using a soft-bristle toothbrush could be the comfortable and safest choice. Also keep in mind, there is no need for over brushing.
- Teeth Grinding: Teeth grinding wears teeth down over time, and this could be one of the most difficult habits to quit.One of the few ways to quit this habit is to wear a mouth guard, ask our Doctors to learn more.
- Using teeth as a tool to open packages: Your teeth are not as strong as you think, and those are certainly not for opening packages! Using your teeth this way, can easily chip or crack your teeth.Quitting this habit only requires some awareness and willpower. Use your hands or other tools as scissors.
- Bedtime Bottles for babies: This may become a bad bedtime habit. It can harm your child’s teeth permanently. When the sugar that is naturally present in milk stays on your child’s teeth overnight, it forms the perfect environment for the formation of cavities. Keep bottles out of your baby’s crib and clean their teeth before bedtime.
- Cough Drops: Cough drops and some medicine contain a lot of sugar that can create problems for your teeth. Cough Drops are taken without water, and they also stick to your teeth, which can cause cavities or plaque. However, there are sugar free alternatives so make sure to read the small print!
It is true, no matter if you floss and brush regularly; habits you think are okay can harm your teeth. If you suffer any of these habits, contact our team of experts at Prestige Dental Care!
