Cavities
What is inside your mouth?
Before you understand what happens in tooth decay, you must know what is in your mouth. Here are a few elements that naturally occur in your mouth
- saliva - your mouth and teeth are constantly draped in saliva. Saliva may be an element that is neglected but this fluid does a remarkable job in protecting mouths and safeguarding oral health. Saliva keeps teeth and other oral tissues moist and lubricated. It washes away some of the food particles left behind after eating. It keeps acidity levels in the mouth low. It protects the mouth against some viruses and bacteria
- plaque - this substance looks like a soft gooey substance that sticks to your mouth. It is comparable to spread sticking to a spoon. This plaque is made from different types of bacteria like protozoa, yeast, mycoplasma, and viruses all coming together in a gooey-like organic material. In the mix of these bacteria by-products, there are white blood cells, food debris, and body tissue. Plaque grows when bacteria attach to the teeth and start multiplying. Plaque will start forming right after a tooth is cleaned. It will take about an hour for plaque to build up to measurable levels. As time passes, different types of microorganisms appear. This will cause the plaque to thicken
- calculus - if left long enough, plaque will start to mineralize and harden into calculus or tartar. This is because the plaque will absorb various minerals like calcium, phosphorus, and other minerals from the saliva. These minerals will form crystals and they will harden the plaque structure. New plaque will form on top of existing calculus and this new layer can be calcified as well
- bacteria - you have several different strains of bacteria in your mouth. Some of them will be good and they will help in controlling destructive bacteria. Some of them will be bad. One of the most destructive bacteria is streptococcus mutans. It attaches easily to the teeth and produces acid constantly
How do your teeth decay?
Everyone needs food. When you eat food, particularly the sweet and the sticky food, some of it will stay in your mouth. Bacteria will use this and it will attack the tooth enamel or the outer surface of the tooth. Sugars like sucrose will react with bacteria to produce acid. This acid can cause your teeth to decay.
The sugars here aren't just candies and ice cream. All carbohydrate foods will break down into simple sugars like glucose and fructose as they are digested and some of that digestion starts at the mouth. Foods that break down into simple sugars in the mouth are known as fermentable carbohydrates. They include the sugary foods like cookies, cakes, soft drinks, candy, pretzels, crackers, bananas, potato chips, and breakfast cereals. The sugar in these foods will combine with bacteria and they will form acids. This happens on a normal basis. The acids will cause the mineral crystals inside the teeth to start to dissolve.
When the acids start to dissolve a tooth's outer protective layer called the enamel, caries lesions are formed. When tooth decay breaks through the enamel and reached the underlying layers of a tooth, a cavity is formed. You can reverse a caries lesion before it becomes a cavity through fluoride products. Some of these fluoride products are fluoride water, fluoride rinses, and fluoride toothpaste.
Whenever you eat, the bacteria in your mouth produce acid. This means that the more times you eat translate into more times your teeth are exposed to an acid attack.
What are the types and stages of tooth decay?
Dental decay or dental caries start inside the tooth. A white spot will appear on the enamel where the tooth has started to become weak inside. During this stage, the tooth can repair the weakened area with the help of fluoride and mineral found in saliva. If the decay continues and breaks through the surface of the enamel then the damage becomes permanent. The decay must be cleaned and it must be filled by a dentist. If the decay is left untreated then it will worsen and destroy the tooth altogether. It will destroy the whole outer layer or enamel of the tooth, the inside dentin layer, and then down to the pulp and nerves of the tooth.
In young children, the teeth that have recently emerged have weak enamel. These teeth are highly susceptible to tooth decay. A type of decay called baby bottle tooth decay or early childhood caries destroys enamel quickly. This is common in children and this type of decay can eat through enamel so quickly that it can leave a large cavity in only a few months.
In the case of older people, they usually have chronic cases where cavities don't seem to get any worse or do so at a very slow rate. Teeth with chronic caries tend to be darker in colour. This is due to the edges of the cavities being stained from normal eating and drinking.
Root caries or the decay in the roots of the teeth is more common in older adults. Older adults are more likely to have gums that receded. This is due to hard brushing over the years or periodontal disease. Older people are also more likely to have dry mouth or xerostomia. This increases the risk of tooth decay. Dry mouth is caused by several types of medicines and you must ask your doctor of pharmacist if any of your medications can cause dry mouth.
Decay can form beneath filling or other restorations like crowns. In some cases, the bacteria and the food particles can slip into a tooth if a filling hasn't been placed properly. Bacteria and food particles can also slip into a tooth if the filling cracks or pulls away from the tooth. This leaves a large gap where the bacteria and food particles can enter.
How do you prevent cavities?
Ask yourself if you or your family members get cavities often. Dental research has identified several factors that can increase your risk of getting tooth decay. On your next visit to your dentist, you can ask about risk factors that can increase the risk of tooth decay. You should also ask your dentist on how you can minimize these risks in order to prevent decay.
In order to prevent your teeth from decaying, you can do two things. First, you can strengthen your teeth's defences with fluoride and sealants. Second, you can reduce the number of bacteria in your mouth.
Fluoride strengthens the teeth by penetrating the tooth structure and replacing lost minerals that have been lost due to acid damage. Everyone must brush with fluoride toothpaste everyday. In some cases, dentists will even recommend additional toothpastes, gels, and mouth rinses for both children and adults.
Sealants are protective coatings placed over the top of chewing teeth. These are the molars and premolars. These sealants will block bacteria and acids from sticking in the tiny grooves on the chewing surfaces of these teeth. Children must get sealants as soon as their teeth come out of their mouth.
You can never get rid of bacteria in your mouth since you have to eat everyday. In terms of eating, the only thing you can do is to reduce your consumption of fermentable carbohydrates. You can control the bacteria in your mouth by brushing regularly and flossing daily. You can also control bacteria by visiting your dentist on a regular basis. Get a thorough cleaning and check-up.
There are some prescription mouthwashes that contain chlorhexidine. This can help prevent tooth decay by reducing the number of bacteria in the mouth. You can also consider chewing sugarless gums especially those with xylitol. This can help reduce decay and increase the flow of saliva.