When it comes to your dental health, it’s not just your oral hygiene regime that you need to nail, you also need to keep an eye on your diet. Brushing and flossing will go a long way to keeping harmful diseases at bay, but if you eat the wrong foods, you are putting your oral health at risk.
Recent research revealed that changes in our diet over the years have contributed to an increased risk of tooth decay; nowadays, we eat more starchy and sugary foods than ever before and our soft food diet has lead to problems associated with the development and alignment of the teeth.
How does diet affect oral health?
Diet has a significant impact on oral health; no matter how conscientious you are when it comes to brushing and attending dental check-ups, if you eat the wrong foods, your oral health is likely to suffer.
The modern diet contains a lot of processed, sugary and floury foods, which can spell trouble for the teeth and gums. When you eat sugary or starchy foods, the bacteria present in the mouth releases harmful plaque acids, which attack and wear away the protective tooth enamel. The enamel is hard and resistant, but eventually it will suffer permanent damage and the tooth will be susceptible to decay and injury. Acidic foods and drinks, such as wine, fizzy drinks, salad dressing and fruit juice are also very harmful for the enamel, as they erode it, leaving it thin and weak and increasing the risk of tooth decay.
How have changes in diet impacted on oral health?
Researchers from the UK and Australia have studied the evolution of the teeth over a period of 7,500 years and discovered that the human mouth contains a much narrower range of bacteria than in previous generations. The results of the study, which was carried out by researchers from the University of Adelaide, the University of Aberdeen and the Welcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge, were published in the journal, Nature Genetics. The lack of diversity in the range of bacteria present in the mouth is thought to have contributed to higher rates of chronic oral health problems.
Dentists, biologists and food scientists have also detected changes in the structure and development of the mouth as a result of changes to the diet. We now have a much softer diet than we used to when the emphasis was on hunting and gathering and this has contributed to a decrease in the size of the jaw, which has had knock-on effects, including crowding, problems with the bite and misalignment of the teeth; many people also suffer from impacted wisdom teeth because there is not enough room in the jaw for the teeth to develop properly. The results of analysis and investigations by experts were presented at the ‘Evolution of Human Teeth and Jaws: Implications for Dentistry and Orthodontics’ conference in North Carolina in 2012.
Diet tips for good oral health
There are some very simple rules you can follow to try and reduce your risk of oral health problems. One of the main things is to try and keep an eye on the amount of sugar you consume and to avoid eating sugary and starchy foods between meals; this is because the teeth can only withstand a limited number of acid attacks per day and grazing through the day means that they are under constant attack. Try to stick to water and milk, rather than fruit juice or fizzy drinks and ensure that you get your recommended daily intake of calcium, which is essential for strong bones, teeth and nails; good sources include cheese, milk and yoghurt.