The foods you eat can play a huge role in your overall health and the health of your teeth and gums. When you make healthy choices with your meals, you will also be protecting your dental health.
Here are some tips about what you can do to ensure your diet helps your oral health rather than causing it harm.
Fill Up on the Right Foods
When you eat a broad spectrum of fresh and colorful foods, you give your body the essential vitamins and minerals it needs. If you’re not getting enough of the right nutrients, it could make your gums more prone to infections or gum disease. Gum disease progresses more rapidly and becomes more severe in people who do not get proper nutrition.
Focus on filling your plate with fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. Chicken, fish, beans, and peas are a few examples of healthy and lean proteins. Dairy is also great for its calcium content, though choosing low-fat options will be best. If you can’t have dairy, you can choose calcium-rich veggies like spinach, broccoli, and kale.
Stay Away from Sugar
There’s certainly nothing wrong with a treat now and then but the more sugar you have, the more risk you have for cavities. Sugar interacts with plaque, creating an acid that attacks your teeth. This acid dissolves the enamel, allowing cavities to form.
Any food or beverage with sugar can cause tooth decay. You will want to avoid or severely limit your intake of soft drinks, candy, cookies, sugary breakfast cereals, pastries, and cakes. Also, watch out for juices as they often contain more sugar than actual juice. You’re better off eating whole fruits instead.
If you find it hard to swap your sodas for water, you can add some fresh slices of cucumber or berries. This will give water more flavor and sweetness to satisfy your sweet tooth.
Limit Your Snacking
Even healthy snacks can be detrimental to your dental health. When you eat a complete meal, it causes less harm than eating many snacks throughout the day. More saliva is released when you eat a meal, which helps wash food particles from your mouth, reducing the impact of acids.
If you must have snacks, try to limit them and choose foods that can help your teeth. Cheese and peanuts in particular can counter the effects of acids in the mouth. You can also choose fruits or vegetables for your snacks, but be sure to drink plenty of water with anything you eat to help keep your mouth from becoming too dry. When your mouth is dry, it doesn’t have enough saliva to wash food particles away, allowing them to stick and cause damage to your smile.
Maintain Good Oral Health Habits
Understanding how your diet can impact your oral health is important. Now that you know what foods you should eat and what to avoid, you can help keep your teeth and gums healthy.
Don’t forget to schedule your dental checkups with your dentist in Levittown, NY. This will ensure you’re doing the best for your smile.
