What You Should Know About Tooth Decay

You can’t help but worry that the next time you go to the dentist that they are going to find a cavity. That pain you have been having in your tooth is just inevitably going to be diagnosed as such. What’s worse is that sometimes we cannot relieve that pain.

Cavities are areas of the tooth that have decayed. The only way to fix a cavity is to remove the decay and replace with an artificial substance. The best thing to do is to avoid the decay in the first place. To understand how to do that, you must understand the cause.

The Cause

Your mouth contains natural good bacteria that helps clean your mouth by breaking down food particles and neutralizing acid. This helps strengthen areas of demineralization and restore minerals to help protect your teeth from decay.

Plaque takes this system and plunges it into chaos. Its builds up on teeth and emits an acid that chips away at tooth enamel and creates cavities. Eventually, plaque can go through the enamel, through the dentin and down to the nerve of the tooth and cause immense pain. When it goes through the dentin, the only course of action is a root canal or extraction.

The Cure

The cure is pretty much what you would expect: see your dentist twice a year, brush your teeth, and floss daily. Use mouthwash and fluoride to help destroy harmful bacteria. Stay away from foods high in sugar and starch.

If you have small cavities, get them fixed as soon as you can. Leaving them the way they are will only cause them to decay further and become bigger problems. Every mouth is different and some people suffer from plaque more than others. Seeing your dentist can help you understand your situation and take steps to keep your mouth free of decay.