Watch The Cavity Juice Boost
by Dr. Rita Dargham D.M.D.
Read Watch The Cavity Juice Boost by Dr. Rita Dargham D.M.D. to learn more about Grove Smiles® Dentistry and our Dentistry office in Coconut Grove, FL.
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Everyone loves Florida orange juice and the significant boost of Vitamin C the oranges contain! But we may not understand how bad fruit juices can be for a fabulous cavity-free smile. As your trusted dental team, we are here to make sure you and your family can get the nutrients they need to have strong, healthy and beautiful teeth without the decay!
Watch The Sugar Content
We know it is not always easy getting all of our daily recommended fruit and vegetable intakes. As such many of us turn to juice as an alternative to help us get some of the nutrients we need. While there are nutritional benefits to fruit juice, it can also be hard on your teeth.
Fruit juice, even if it’s all natural, contains a lot of sugar. What’s worse is that many fruit juices, especially those marketed for children, have added sugar in them. And even though fruit juice is often espoused as a healthy alternative to soda, the majority of them contain just as much sugar as soda, sometimes even more! And as you well know, sugar is the number one culprit behind tooth decay.
Unfortunately, sugar isn’t the only problem as fruit juice is also very acidic. The combination of sugar and acid can pack a mean punch: while acid weakens the tooth enamel, sugar feeds cavity-causing bacteria and contributes to decay. Needless to say, this powerful combination can be very hard on your teeth’s enamel.
Easy Steps To Protect Your Teeth
The American Dental Association recommends that we should have limited amounts of fruit juice, but when we do to follow these five tips to help safeguard our teeth from decay:
1. Don’t sip on juice throughout the day. When drinking juice intake all the juice at once instead of throughout the day. Tooth decay is more about how long sugar comes in contact with the teeth and less about how much. An easy step to protect your teeth from damage is to dilute the juice with water.
2. Drink primarily at mealtimes. When you are eating a meal, more saliva is produced which helps wash away the sugar left by juice. The physical act of chewing the food also contributes to removing sugar from adhering to your teeth.
3. Use a straw. Using a straw will reduce the amount of sugar and acid that comes in direct contact with teeth.
4. Rinse with water. After you drink a glass of juice, rinse with water to wash away any remaining sugar.
5. In general, it’s better to eat fruit than to drink it. The fiber in whole fruit slows the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream, so it’s not only better for your teeth, but it’s also better for your body.
Great Dentist Ready To Help in Coconut Grove, FL
We are proud to help generations of families create and maintain healthy smiles. So call today as our team at Grove Smiles Dentistry is here to work with you and your family in treating and preventing tooth decay so that your whole family can have a healthy life and a cavity-free smile!
For Your Health,
Dr. Rita Dargham D.M.D.