DO YOU DRINK COFFEE DURING THE DAY

so here i go with one of my first posts of many about prevention.

WHY DO WE GET CAVITIES

when ever we eat or drink any fermentable carbohydrate (this means just about any type of carb) bacteria on our teeth interact with the sugars and create an acid. this acid eats away at the mineral content of first the enamel and then the dentin of the tooth. (the dentin is much softer so it breakdowns much quicker than enamel) our saliva contains minerals to stop the acidic breakdown. we get a cavity when this balance is broken by too much acid production. the acid production usually lasts for 20 minutes, although i just read something that said the acid lbalance is affected for up to 2 hours.

WHAT IS UP WITH COFFEE????

coffee by itself is not a problem as far as cavities are concerned (homeiopathics do not like coffee at all becasue of the caffiene content) it is what you put into the coffee that creates cavities. sugar, milk and cream. all of these have some carbohydrate content to them. the bacteria love this. every drink you take with this loaded coffee means a minimum of 20 minutes of acid attack. if you nurse this type of coffee all day long you can be putting yourself at much higher risk of having cavities. it is no different with tea and any natural sweetened beverage.

WHAT CAN YOU DO???

if you do not want to change how you drink coffee you can consider doubling up on you rhygiene, chewing sugarless gum (to promote salivary flow) and using flouride rinses. there are non sugar sweetners out there including the new one in the yellow package (I am sorry, the name of it excapes me right now). You can actually drink your coffee quicker to limit the exposure time. and if youwant more info post or talk to your dentist.