How to avoid cavities over Easter
Tips on how to have your chocolate and eat it too!
Hot cross buns, Easter egg hunts, family get-togethers. ‘Diet’ becomes a dirty word over the Easter long weekend, if it wasn’t one already. What becomes even dirtier, in many cases, is our teeth.
Sweet treats, sugary indulgences – we want you to enjoy them this Easter. So here are our inside tips on how to have your chocolate and eat it too – but avoid cavities.
Wash your mouth out – with tap water
When it comes to dental health, it’s not necessarily the amount of sugar we eat and drink over Christmas, it’s more about how long that sugar stays in our mouth.
Rinsing with or drinking tap water after these snacks can help you avoid cavities. And drink tap water frequently, in place of bottled water where possible, for the added benefit of the fluoride.
Don’t graze all day
When you eat sweet or starchy foods, the bacteria in your mouth will use the sugar to create energy. As those bacteria burn energy, they create acids that can begin to erode the enamel of your teeth.
About 20 minutes after you eat, your saliva begins to neutralise the acids formed by the bacteria in your mouth.
So, the more frequently that you eat, the longer your tooth enamel will be exposed to cavity-causing acids.
Chew some sugarless gum – to help avoid cavities. This creates more saliva to help wash away sugar and other harmful acids.
Don’t brush too soon
Last year the Australian Dental Association (ADA) reviewed a survey carried out in 12 countries, by YouGov on behalf of the FDI World Dental Federation, which exposed a significant gap between what Australians believed to be good oral health practices, versus what actually are good oral health practices.
Just over half (51%) of people surveyed mistakenly thought it was important to brush your teeth straight after every main meal. The FDI recommends waiting at least 30 minutes after eating to brush your teeth to avoid weakening tooth enamel.
Easter trading hours at Shire Dental
Shire Dental Centre will be closed from Good Friday, 30 March 2018 to Easter Monday, 2 April 2018 inclusive.
We reopen at 9am on Tuesday 3 April 2018.
