How A Healthier Diet Can Protect Your Teeth

Our diets can have a huge impact on how our bodies process nutrients, fight off against disease and provide us with the energy needed for our day. However, for some, our diets are often neglected, and with that negligence comes more vulnerability to diseases. This also includes oral diseases such as tooth decay, gum disease, and dry mouth. Our mouths are much more sensitive to what we eat than initially thought, and because of this intricacy, it’s important that we emphasize how essential our diets are to our oral health to help you have a healthier smile.

How Our Diets Impact Our Oral Health

One fascinating detail about our mouths is that it acts as one of our body’s first defense mechanisms against disease. Our bodies are a host of bacteria that works within our gut microbiome, a collection of proteins, cells, and bacteria that aids in our digestion process when absorbing food. The gut microbiome regulates our digestive tract and helps metabolize the food we eat for nutrients and energy, so how does this connect with our oral health? Our oral health works in cooperation with our bodies to maintain a state of homeostasis, and thus the introduction of harmful bacteria can easily cause disruptions to our systems.

So, what happens when our oral health isn’t up to par with what our bodies need? These collections of harmful bacteria don’t only cause cavities and gum disease but can also increase the risk of respiratory diseases and digestion problems, and throughout all of this, our bodies aren’t able to get the nutrients we need through an unhealthy diet. Unhealthy diets help feed cavity-causing bacteria and hurt us in more ways than one!

Our Recommendations For A Healthy Diet

Practicing good oral hygiene is our first line of defense against cavities and gum disease, but for long-term protection plans that truly help us live better, a healthy diet is essential—changing your diet for the better means eating healthier foods, sticking to meal schedules that work, and most of all, eating nutritious foods that you enjoy. Diet and exercise are the two best health tips you can ever get for a healthier lifestyle, and that includes our oral health. Within your diet, you should focus on getting foods that are healthy and nutritious, including:

• Vitamins Are Your Best Friend: Foods rich in vitamin C, A, and D are excellent choices because of their benefits in fortifying our bones, protecting our immune system, and maintaining healthy soft tissues. Some foods to consider are strawberries, mushrooms, carrots, and salmon.
• The More Calcium The Better: Dairy products with loads of calcium such as milk, cheese, and yogurts help work with vitamin D to fortify our teeth and gums.
• Drink More Fluoridated Water: Fluoridated water helps protect the enamel from breaking down and helps increase saliva production for removing bacteria and cleaning your teeth.
• Eat Fiber-Rich Fruits and Vegetables: Fiber also assists with saliva production and can help aid the digestion process. Foods such as broccoli, bananas, beets, and asparagus can work to bring more fiber into your diet.

For more information about maintaining oral health through dieting, make a visit to your local dentist to learn more!