- Children’s teeth are soft until about age 10.
- A tooth with a crown can get a cavity.
- Your gum tissue is as critical as your teeth.
- Some prescription medications can increase your risk of cavities.
- Some home faucet water filters remove fluoride.
- 19 percent of kids between the ages of 2 and 19 have untreated decay.
- Heartburn can be harmful for teeth.
- Allergies can cause tooth grinding.
- Dried fruit is just as harmful for teeth as sticky candy.
- Tooth enamel cannot repair itself, though dentin and cementum (the substance that surrounds the tooth root) are capable of partial regeneration.
- A Harvard-led team used low-powered lasers to activate stem cells and stimulate the growth of teeth in rats and human dental tissue in a lab. 1
- There are about 300 types of bacteria in your mouth.
- Chewing sugarless gum after meals can help remove food particles on your teeth. You still need to brush, but if you can’t brush immediately after meals, sugarless gum can help keep your teeth clean.
- Cavities often don’t cause pain until they have reached the root and nerve of the tooth. Visit your dentist regularly to prevent cavities or at least to detect them when they are small.
- Bone recession can cause tooth loss even if no decay is present.
I am Dr. Steven Gustafson of Gustafson Morningstar Dentistry. I hope you have found today’s post interesting and perhaps even learned something new about your amazing teeth and some of the lesser-known risk factors for decay.
1 http://www.businessinsider.com/laser-stem-cell-tooth-tissue-regeneration-2014-5#ixzz3fzlosJDMTooth
Contact Gustafson Morningstar Dentistry:
248-541-8770
Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):
940 E 11 Mile Rd
Royal Oak, Michigan
48067
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