What Not to Chew!

What Not to Chew!
By Dr. Kayvan Ashnaei

Your teeth are precious. Although your teeth are strong, they are not meant to bite everything. If you have a habit of chewing or biting on things you are not supposed to, you need to rethink that habit. It may end up causing you serious problems with your teeth, which could mean a big expense for you, too.

Ten bad habits you should break in order to protect your teeth:

1. Do not bite or chew ice.Ice can seriously damage your teeth and gums. Fracture lines, chips and cracks are common results of frequent ice chewing. If the damaged area is large enough, a root canal, tooth extraction or even cosmetic dental treatments may be required! Even if frequent ice chewing does not result in one of these more serious conditions, it will still wear down the enamel on your teeth much faster than normal, which leads to cavities. If you're a chronic ice chewer, it's really in your teeth's best interest for you to break the habit.


2. Avoid biting down on hard objects. Biting down on hard nuts, hard candy, popcorn kernels, pencils, pens and other hard objects can cause your teeth to crack and can weaken the enamel of your teeth. Similar to chewing ice, chewing hard objects can also fracture teeth, leading to costly dental treatments. Respect your teeth and avoid these hard objects.


3. Do not suck on lemons.If done on a regular basis, the citric acid in lemons can leach important minerals from your teeth and wear away your teeth's outer layers, making them sensitive to cold food and drinks and prone to chipping and cracking. You do not need to give up citrus fruit, but make sure that you aren't holding it in your mouth for an extended period of time.


4. Do not brush too hard.Applying more pressure while brushing or using a hard-bristled toothbrush does not make teeth cleaner or shinier. When you brush too vigorously or use a hard-bristled toothbrush, it can wear away the protective enamel on your teeth. Hard brushing may also lead to receding gums and increased tooth sensitivity to cold and touch.


5. Avoid using your teeth as tools.Many people use their teeth as tools to open bottles or bags of chips, tear into plastic tape, rip a price tag off a piece of clothing and even bite into wires. People also tend to hold things between their teeth like hairpins, screws, flashlights and so on. Your teeth were not meant to be used like this. Using your teeth in these ways can have a traumatic effect, causing the edge of a weakened tooth to chip off or even break. Using your teeth as tools can also cause malocclusion (poor jaw alignment) by wearing down your teeth unevenly. Keep the real tools like scissors or wire cutters handy and use them to do the work.


6. Do not bite your nails.Nail biting is not only bad for your nails, but it is also harmful to your teeth. It can cause broken or chipped front teeth, and is an opportunity for germs and bacteria from underneath your nails to enter your mouth and cause cavities or gum infections.


7. Lessen the impact of teeth grinding.Teeth grinding can lead to a variety of dental problems, including chipping, cracking, fracturing, loosening and excessive wear of the teeth. It can also cause pain in the jaw joints, headaches and severe toothaches. This habit often occurs at night during sleep, usually in response to emotional stress. To limit the damage teeth grinding can cause, your dentist may suggest wearing a mouth guard at night.


8. Watch out for white wine.Some people choose white wine over red wine as the latter can stain the teeth. But white wine can actually cause more permanent problems because of its high acidity. This acid wears away the tooth enamel, which exposes the darker layer underneath (the dentin), giving teeth a yellowed appearance and leaving them much more vulnerable to stains from any colored food or drinks. For protection, rinse your mouth with water after you drink white wine, and eat some cheese with your wine to balance out the wine's acidity.


9. Avoid excessive soft drink consumption.Sugary drinks, such as sweetened carbonated sport drinks and soft drinks, are one of the most significant dietary sources of tooth decay. It's not just the sugar in soft drinks that is bad for your teeth. The acids included in the drink also contribute to the formation of cavities. Sugar-free drinks are less harmful, but they can still cause problems, as most of them are also acidic.


10. Do not suck your thumb.Thumb-sucking, one of the most common children's habits, interferes with the positioning of the upper and lower front teeth, causing the upper teeth to splay out and the lower teeth to fold back into the mouth. These changes in the bite position eventually require orthodontic treatment.

These are just a few examples of some of the damaging habits that have an impact on your mouth and teeth. These tips are simply a reminder to use common sense. Avoid the need for aesthetic dentistry, and take care of your beautiful smile and your overall health, by knowing what not to chew and developing healthy habits.

For more information on this topic or Family and Cosmetic Dentistry, please visit one of the modern Coquitlam dental clinics online.

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