Ask The Dental Hygienist

In order for tooth decay to be developed in a tooth, that tooth must have acid producing bacteria around it, along with food for the bacteria to feed upon. Teeth that are susceptible to decay will have little to no fluoride in the enamel to fight the plaque. Fluoride can destroy decay, although it won’t be able to do much once the decay has started to eat the teeth.

Poor hygiene habits will allow the plaque and tartar to build up around teeth and speed up the process of decay. Even though your mouth has a lot of bacteria that is always present, only one type will generate the acid that results in tooth decay. Some people have active decay that is always present in their mouths. Parents with active decay can easily pass the decay on to a child or loved one through eating, drinking from the same glass, or even kissing.

Once the decay has settled in the tooth’s enamel, it will progress very slow. Once it has made it through to the second layer of the enamel, it will spread faster as it heads towards the pulp. The pulp is a vital area of the tooth, as it contains the nerves and blood supply. This is where the pain will be the most intense, as the decay will start to eat at the nerves.

Although decay can take 2 – 3 years to get through the enamel, it can make it from the dentin to the pulp in less than a year. Once it makes it to the dentin, the decay can destroy most of the tooth structure in a matter of weeks – or months. The most preventable type of tooth decay, known as smooth decay, also grows the slowest. It starts out as a white spot in the tooth, where the bacteria dissolves the enamel. Smooth decay is very common with those 20 – 30 years of age.

Pit or fissure decay is a bit more serious, forming along the narrow grooves in the chewing side of the molars. It progresses more rapidly, and can eat your teeth a lot faster than smooth decay. Due to the grooves being so narrow, it can be hard to clean them with regular bushing. Even though you may brush on a regular basis, this type of decay is hard to prevent without going to the dentist for your regular checkups and cleaning.

The last type of decay, known as root decay, begins on the surface of the root. Root decay is common with middle aged individuals. It is normally the result of dry mouth, a lot of sugar, or not taking care of your teeth. Root decay is the most difficult to prevent, and the most serious type of tooth decay. It can eat teeth fast, leaving you no choice but to get the affected teeth removed.

Tooth decay is no laughing matter, and should always be treated before it has time to spread and affect more of your teeth. If you visit your dentist for your regular checkups and cleaning, you can normally prevent it from starting. You should always brush on a daily basis, and use mouthwash such as Scope or Listerine to kill bacteria. Bacteria is always present in your mouth, although you can use mouthwash to kill it. If you take care of your teeth and follow the advice of your dentist, you can normally prevent tooth decay before it has a chance to eat at your teeth.

Having bad breath can pose a lot of problems for any person in life. When you have bad breath, there are a lot of things in life that you are unable to enjoy, like close contact with a loved one and even the taste of your food. Bad breath remedies are available for those who want to cure their chronic bad breath, and if you are one of those people who either cannot afford to visit a doctor or refuse to visit a doctor about some bad breath, here are some bad breath remedies that you can use at home to help you cure your bad breath.

Brushing and Flossing

Obviously, the biggest of the bad breath remedies is to take good care of your teeth. If you can not take good care of your teeth, then you probably do not really want to cure your bad breath because that is the number one cause of bad breath anywhere. If you want to try out some bad breath remedies make sure that you are starting with the obvious thing and taking good care of your teeth.

Avocado

Avocado is one of the lesser known of the bad breath remedies. Eating avocado can help many people to ease the chronic bad breath that ails them and everybody around them, but not eating too much avocado. It is not difficult to get rid of bad breath with avocado and it is easily found in the produce aisle of any grocery store in your local community.

Reduce Protein Intake

Proteins are one of the culprits when it comes to chronic bad breath. Eat less steak and chicken and fresher fruits and vegetables and you should surely see an increase in the number of people that are coming close to you. This is one of the most popular bad breath home remedies out there, and if you eat properly then you can make sure that you reduce your bad breath.

Drink Enough Water

If you drink enough water, you can easily cure your bad breath if it is not some more complicated medical problem. Having a dry mouth leads to bad breath and of the more common bad breath remedies water is one of the biggest ones. You can drink water out of a glass or eat fruits and vegetables, as they are packed with the water and that is a good one of the many bad breath remedies.