Reston, Virginia
Do you prefer the sweet over the savory? Have you ever felt pain or sensitivity when chewing on something really sugary? If you are experiencing either, tooth decay might be the culprit! Dr. Queen and the staff at Elden Street Dental Care in Herndon, VA have a cure for the curse of tooth decay! And no, you won’t have to suppress your appetite for desserts, you might just need to make better choices in the kinds of sugar-filled food you eat.
Some people might not know the causes and effects of tooth decay. And if you aren’t sure exactly what tooth decay is or does, let me tell you a story about a little girl I know from my neighborhood:
Joanna was a young girl who enjoyed drinking orange juice and eating candy…every single day. Twix? Gummy bears? Skittles? You name it! She loved them all. And her parents didn’t seem to mind. (She probably inherited her sweet tooth from them.) Hence, when her teeth turned dark and became painful, it was already too late. What happened? Rampant tooth decay at a very early age – that’s what happened.
Tooth decay, or a cavity, is a permanently damaged area in the hard surface of your teeth that results from bacteria developing into acids that form holes. Luckily for little Joanna, the teeth impacted–and the ones she inevitably lost by having them extracted–were her baby teeth. She, and her parents, learned a lesson (albeit an expensive and painful one), in enough time so as not repeat history when her permanent teeth came in. An adult with the same eating habits, however, would not have been so fortunate.
Adult sugar-addicts are much more prone to their teeth decaying. But anyone can develop tooth decay. Infact, 92% of adults aged 20 to 64 have had dental caries in their permanent teeth.
Cavities can be caused by many factors like:
- The bacteria in your mouth
- Sweet drinks like juices, sodas, and other carbonated drinks
- Binging on snacks regularly; and of course,
- The lack of proper hygiene necessary to clean your teeth thoroughly.
Not brushing and flossing regularly can cause a lot of damage to your teeth! You may not see it as soon as you’d expect, but it’s happening behind the scenes. Tooth decay starts slowly. But how does it start and how quickly does it progress?
Tooth decay starts with a build up of plaque. And dental plaque is caused by consuming a lot of sugary food & drinks.
First, if you aren’t brushing often and thoroughly, a soft, sticky substance called plaque will build up on your teeth. If your teeth have ever felt fuzzy, it’s from the plaque that has formed on them…just sitting there…waiting to be whisked away by a toothbrush and replaced with a clean, slippery feeling after. But if you don’t brush it away, the bacteria in plaque will produce acids that begin to attack the first layer of your teeth.
When plaque remains on your teeth, it hardens and forms a “shield” for the bacteria to grow, while it continues to feed on the enamel of your teeth. Consider it a domino effect: the plaque hardens, creates tartar (the hard shield) and makes it even more difficult to get rid of. When tartar forms around your tooth/teeth, then plaque really begins its attack.
After sinking through first layer of tooth structure, plaque continues to attack the minerals of the teeth, sinking into the inner layer of the tooth’s enamel. Tiny holes begin to form — and this is the first stage of what we call a cavity.
Once the enamel is compromised, the bacteria move to the next layer of your tooth which is referred to as the dentin.
Dentin is the layer beneath the enamel which is less resistant to the acids that are affecting our teeth. They have tiny tubules that are directly connected to the nerves of the tooth, and when penetrated by decay, it can cause severe sensitivity when you eat something sweet or drink something cold.
After the bacteria has made its way through the plaque and the dentin, further destruction of the tooth continues. You will feel a lot more sensitivity on the affected tooth due to the bacteria and acid making its way deeper into your tooth, the part that contains blood vessels and the nerve. The inner tooth material will start to get swollen, creating an abcess, because there is no space in the tooth for the swelling to expand. The nerve gets pressed which causes significant pain, pain that can only be relieved with antibiotics and a root canal…or worst case scenario, a tooth extraction.
Now that you know more about the causes of tooth decay, it’s a good idea for you to be aware of what you can do to prevent it, right?
- Stay away from sugary food & drinks – if you are prone to tooth decay or have had cavities treated before, it would be a lot better for you and your teeth if you steered clear from sticky, sweet foods and drinks like cookies, cakes, candies, ice cream, honey, soda, sweet tea and the like. Choose to eat foods that are easily washed away by water and/or saliva to prevent bacteria build-up that may cause tooth decay.
- Brush your teeth regularly – and use toothpaste that contains fluoride. Flouride is considered a cavity blocker and protects your teeth, leading to less tooth decay. Toothpaste with flouride has been responsible for a significant drop in cavities since 1960 and works by reducing the ability of decay-causing bacteria to stick to teeth, making it easier to be washed away by saliva and brushing.
- Check-in with your dentist at least every six months – you can’t brush away a cavity…and left untreated, tooth decay will worsen and deepen. Routine x-rays and regular checkups with Dr. Queen in Herndon, VA are the only way to ensure your teeth are healthy and decay is not present. If decay is found, Dr. Queen will provide options and alternatives to treat it and ways to prevent decay from damaging your teeth in the future..
Whether young or old, anyone with teeth can suffer from tooth decay. But those with an addiction to sugar and junk food-a-holics are at greater risk. Knowing how decay forms, how quickly it worsens, and how it can be prevented might help break the curse of tooth decay, or at the very least, cause you to be mindful about the kinds of food you eat on a regular basis. You can’t eat without teeth, so if you want to enjoy food — savory or sweet — make sure you take care of your mouth.
Suspect you might have tooth decay or are you experiencing pain and sensitivity associated with a particular tooth? Call us today at 703-689-2480 for a free evaluation. Emergencies are always given priority at Elden Street Dental Care and same-day appointments are available.