Acid on teeth after eating sweet foods

sammyjammy

I've become a bit fixated on there being acid on my teeth after sweet food and how wrong it is to clean your teeth for up to 40 mins after eating.

The answer, I know is not to eat sweet food but back in the real word how do I resolve this problem?

I've heard that the following will neutralise the acid but would this then enable you to clean your teeth straight away if you wanted to? I'm not suggesting cleaning my teeth after each meal, more thinking if I eat before going to bed.

Rinse with water after eating
Rinse with a PH balancing mouthwash
chew sugarfree gum

Any help much appreciated.

theoretica

One solution is to brush your teeth before eating rather than after - there was some study or other in the news a while back about doing so.

System

how wrong it is to clean your teeth for up to 40 mins after eating

That sounds more like OCD

sammyjammy

!!!!!! wrote: »

That sounds more like OCD

LOL not cleaning my teeth for 40 minutes but waiting for forty minute after you've eaten!

brook2jack

Mouthwash is completely useless as most are either acid or a few are neutral. They should not be used as most have no clinical evidence to say they are of any use at all.

On the rare occasions you eat just before bed you could do worse than chewing a piece of cheese after eating something sweet as this will help to neutralise the acid.

The very worst thing you can do is eat or drink something sweet just before bed as when you go to sleep your saliva flow decreases and it is saliva that is critically important in neutralising acid.

The key to controlling decay is not how many times a day you brush your teeth (no more than twice a day, any more than this and you will wear teeth away) but the frequency and timing of eating sugary things. No more than three sugar attacks a day and none just before bed.

sammyjammy

Thanks Brook2jack

So basically there is no way to neutralise that acid? I don't tend to eat before bed but on occasion I might nibble a bit of chocolate.

I really try not to snack on sweet things but I am a grazer and I do have a sweet tooth.

Toothsmith

The reason you need to wait a while is not so much for the actual acid - but the effect it has on the enamel.

The acid will soften the surface of the enamel. Only a very thin layer - but that layer will harden up again once saliva has bathed it for 30-40 mins.

If you scrub that layer before it has hardened again, then it will be damaged, and done repeatedly, the tooth will slowly erode away.

So the reason you have to wait isn't for the acid to go away, but for the acid damage to be repaired by the saliva.

Brooks suggestion to have a bit of cheese will increase the amount of calcium around your mouth, and so increase the rate of repair.

Sharon87

They done an experiment on a food programme and they tested the pH of the mouth after something sweet, then another test after eating something sweet then eating some cheese. The pH was a lot lower after eating some cheese.

So if you're really aware of the acidity in your mouth after eating something sweet, eat a small amount of cheese can help

maninthestreet

My dentist recommends chewing sugar-free gum - it stimulates saliva production that helps to nuetralise acids.

SailorSam

The last couple of mornings they've been talking about tooth decay on Bbc Breakfast, one young kid this morning was having to have all their teeth out. They said parents should brush their childrens teeth for them , up to the age of 14 to make sure it was done properly, and one viewer said she sometimes brushes her daughters teeth, and she is 19. One thing that one of the dentists said surprised ne. He said after we've finished brushing our teeth we should only spit out any excess and not swill, even with water.
I look after my teeth but i've always rinsed after brushing, well you live and learn.

KARO

SailorSam wrote: »

They said parents should brush their childrens teeth for them , up to the age of 14 to make sure it was done properly, and one viewer said she sometimes brushes her daughters teeth, and she is 19.

:eek:

Seriously? I don't watch morning tv, perhaps this is why :rotfl:

(I am of course assuming there's no physical or mental disability which would prevent the youngster from being able to brush their own teeth)