Patriot Health Digest
This “worst foods” list is divided into two types: acidic foods and foods that are sticky. Both can destroy your tooth enamel, which makes you more susceptible to cavities and can even make your teeth look more yellow.
1. Some Salad Dressings
Some salad dressings have an acid, like fresh lemon juice or vinegar. Stay far away from these when you’re looking for that salad dressing of your dreams.
2. Crackers and Chips
These are foods that will stick to your teeth. They might be delicious, but they’re only harming your teeth. Carbohydrates cling to your teeth and break down into sugar. The end result is a party for bacteria in your mouth, leading to cavities.
Thanks to the constant exposure to stomach acid, acid reflux is not good for your teeth. In one 2017 study in ​BMC Gastroenterology,​ 60 percent of people with dental erosion also had GERD. But the study also found that being treated for GERD stopped the continuing damage to tooth enamel.
4. Lemon Water
Maybe you drink lemon water throughout the afternoon or drink it in the morning before coffee. Lemon water might be good for your body, but it is terrible for your teeth. The lemon turns the water into an acidic drink, and drinking it throughout the day covers your teeth in the lemon’s acids.
5. Flavored Waters
If you like to drink sparkling water, then check your label. Your favorite drink might have added juice, sugar, or citric acids. And just as with lemon, these flavors will erode and destroy your enamel — especially if you drink a lot of it.
6. Grazing
This one is not a food, but instead a bad habit. When you eat, the pH of your mouth lowers (lower pH means more acidic), and it takes 20 minutes after you get done eating for your pH to increase and your mouth to get back to normal. If you are eating all day, your mouth is staying acidic more than what it should.
What To Eat For Healthy Teeth?
Drink lots of water, the more you do, the more your mouth will get washed out. Drinking normal H2O will also protect you from dry mouth, which is connected to tooth decay.
In general, the best diet for your smile is one with limited sugars and salt and filled with fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, fish and lean meats.
