Advice for Having Healthy Teeth
For all of our clients at Fifth Avenue Endodontics of New York, this information is helpful to you, and continues our three-part feature on eating for healthy teeth, skin, hair and nails. When we are children, everyone starts telling us not to eat candy or a lot of sugary foods and drinks to protect our health and smile – That’s all true! But, if you want to be proactive – read on to learn little known facts about what you should eat for healthy teeth, gums, hair, and nails!
Here are a few delicious healthy foods that are great for you on the inside and out!
Whiter Teeth
If you want to sport a gleaming smile you can skip the white strips and start noshing on healthy, vitamin rich fresh and naturally sweet strawberries! They taste better and deliver sustenance with a natural astringent malic acid, plus vitamin C to help get rid of stains and plaque. Just remember, you still need to keep the floss around for those pesky post-snack particles.
To prevent cavities and maintain good oral health and good breath, consider the fact that food changes in your mouth the moment you eat something. Bacteria in your mouth converts sugars and carbohydrates from the foods you eat to acids, and it’s the acids that begin to attack the enamel on your teeth, which is the start of the decay process. So, the more often you eat and snack, the more frequently you are exposing your teeth to the cycle of decay.
Stronger, Healthier Gums
For the health of your mouth, some of the best food choices include cheeses, chicken or other lean protein-rich meats, nuts, and milk. These foods are thought to protect tooth enamel and having healthy teeth by providing the calcium and phosphorus needed to re-mineralize teeth. Re-mineralization is the natural process by which minerals are re-deposited in tooth enamel after being removed by acids.
Other smart food choices include firm/crunchy fruits (for example, apples and pears) and vegetables. These choices offer high water content, which dilutes the effects of the sugars they contain, and stimulate the flow of the saliva. Your saliva is important because it helps protect against decay by washing away food particles and buffering the acids. When you wish to eat acidic foods, such as citrus fruits, tomatoes, and lemons, make them part of a larger meal to reduce the acid from them and their impact to your teeth and gums.
Coffee is the most popular way for adults to start the day in the U.S., but, you might want to switch to Green Tea or at least add it to your routine. Green tea improves the health of your teeth and gums, as it decreases inflammation, makes your mouth more alkaline, inhibits the growth of cavity-causing bacteria, prevents tooth loss, may slow progression of oral cancer, and freshens breath by killing odor-causing bacteria. Also, green tea tends to be rich in fluoride which is possibly the best known tooth strengthening agent available.
Longer, stronger fingernails and hair!
A smart go to for quick snack staples are almonds and carrots. Almonds happen to strengthen fingernails due to the high content of biotin and vitamin E found in the nuts. And, carrots provide high amounts of beta-carotene which converts to vitamin A in your body which is essential to hair growth. Not enough of either in your system may lead your talons and locks to become dry and dull.
For a truly healthy, bright smile – keep your diet simple, balanced and rich in lean protein, fresh raw greens and vegetables, and vitamins while eliminating or minimizing anything processed and/or sugary. And, floss daily! Your New York City Endodontist cares about the health of your teeth!
