If you want your teeth to be healthy and beautiful, you need to maintain oral hygiene and eat healthy food. Most of us are aware that sweets have a negative effect on the condition of our teeth and gums. But did you know that some foods and drinks may not be as useful as we think? Here is the list of seven foods and drinks that spoil your teeth more than candies.
1. Bottled juice
Bottled juice is not as healthy as we think. It can be quite acidic and often contains a lot of sugars. This sugar nourishes bacteria in the mouth that cause cavities and plague. The best dentists in Yonkers suggest replacing sweet bottled juice with apple juice because it usually doesn’t contain added sugar. It is also recommended to sip some water after apple juice in order to reduce the natural sugar or you can make different juices at home.
2. Pasta sauce
Tomatoes are good for our health but they contain a lot of acids. When you eat tomato sauce with spaghetti, you get double the enamel damage. Sour sauce can soften tooth enamel and carbohydrates in the pasta nourish the bacteria that cause tooth decay. If you can’t live without pasta, you can replace the tomato sauce with cheese.
3. Bottled water
Do you know that regular bottled water can contain minerals that are added for flavor? They can also boost the acidity in your mouth. The fact is that this water can have the same acidity as tea and coffee. If you want to know which water is less acidic, try to find the word distilled on the bottle. Distillation lowers the pH balance (a scale indicating acidity) to a more neutral value. You can also buy a reusable bottle and take water from the tap.
4. Flavored chips
Flavored chips can cause a lot of damage to your oral health. Their sharp edges can injure your gums and refined carbohydrates in them are food for bacteria in your mouth. But chips are usually full of flavorings which are also acidic and the contamination of those acids is very high in extreme flavorings. If you want some snacks, it is better to eat popcorn and nuts.
5. Alcohol drinks
Beer, wine, cocktails, and other alcohols can greatly affect your teeth, especially if you prefer to slowly sip your drink. Carbohydrates in beer feed on bacteria and the carbonation make it more acidic, which also destroys tooth enamel. Sweet wines usually contain a lot of sugar so it’s better to avoid these sweet drinks. In addition to sugar, drinks with high alcohol content can dry your mouth, increasing the likelihood of gum disease and tooth decay.
6. Yogurt
You may think that yogurt can’t be harmful. Of course, if you eat only plain yogurt, it has a lot of benefits. It also contains calcium and probiotics that are very useful. But sweet yogurts contain fruit purees with an excess amount of sugar and acids. Such yogurt can bring you more harm than benefits. Replace them with plain yogurt and add some fresh fruit into it.
7. Tea and coffee
Tea and coffee can help you get up in the morning and not to fall asleep during the day. But they can cause great damage to your teeth. They are both diuretic and acidic. Such a combination is able to dry out your mouth in a few minutes. When your body produces less saliva then needed, food particles remain between your teeth for a longer time. This can lead to tooth decay and gum disease. If you want to eliminate the negative effect of tea and coffee, rinse your mouth with plain water afterward