General Dental Advice

Tooth Decay

Soon after you brush your teeth, a thin, sticky layer of bacteria forms on the surfaces of all your teeth. This layer of bacteria is called plaque.

When you eat anything sugary, the bacteria on your teeth turn the sugar into energy and acid. This acid softens and dissolves the hard enamel surface of your teeth in a process called demineralisation. Over time, demineralisation can cause cavities to form in your teeth. This is known as tooth decay or caries.

The enamel surface of your teeth doesn’t contain any nerves, so you won’t initially feel any pain when you start to get a cavity. Eventually, however, a cavity may reach the dentine – the yellowish substance underneath the enamel that forms the bulk of your tooth. Dentine is sensitive to pain, so more advanced cavities may cause pain, especially when you eat or drink anything hot, sugary or acidic.

Saliva helps to wash away and neutralise the acid on your teeth. It contains minerals to replace those lost from the enamel in a process called remineralisation.

Demineralisation and remineralisation happen every time you eat or drink something sugary. If you consume sugary food or drinks too often, the saliva doesn’t get long enough to fully remineralise your teeth. This will increase your risk of getting tooth decay.

Gum Disease

Gum disease is inflammation of your gums and damage to the bone that anchors your teeth into your jaw. Gum disease is very common and affects more than half of adults who have their own (natural) teeth.

If you don’t clean plaque off your teeth regularly, your gums will become red, swollen and shiny, and they may bleed. This is the early stage of gum disease, called gingivitis. Gingivitis is completely reversible. If you remove the plaque, your gums will get better.

If you don’t get treatment for gingivitis, your gums may begin to pull away from your teeth, leaving a little pocket around each tooth. These pockets trap plaque that you can’t reach with a toothbrush. Over time, the plaque will harden to become tartar (calculus).

Plaque and tartar build up and can cause further irritation, which may gradually spread to the bone structures around your teeth. As time goes by, the pockets can get deeper and more difficult to clean, and your gum and bone may shrink. This is called periodontitis. If your gums shrink, they can expose some of the roots of your teeth, making them wobbly and sensitive. If left untreated over a number of years, your teeth may fall out, or need to be taken out by a dentist.

You can prevent gum disease by controlling the amount of plaque and tartar that build up on your teeth. Regular visits to your dentist or hygienist, brushing and flossing your teeth properly, and stopping smoking will help.

Dental Erosion

Dental erosion is the loss of enamel and dentine, caused by acid attacking the surfaces of your teeth. But unlike tooth decay, the acids aren’t from bacteria. They usually come from acidic drinks such as fruit juices, fizzy drinks and squashes – even the ‘diet’ varieties. Over half of all children aged 15 to 18 in the UK have some dental erosion.

You can help to prevent dental erosion by limiting the number of acidic drinks you consume. If you have a young child, try to only give him or her water or milk to drink. Or, when your child does have an acidic drink, give it to him or her in a cup rather than in a feeding bottle and only at meal times.

Stomach acid in vomit can also cause dental erosion. If you have a health condition that makes you sick often (for example bulimia nervosa, alcohol or stomach problems), you may risk damaging your teeth.

Dental erosion is irreversible. It can cause your teeth to become sensitive if the dentine becomes exposed. If this happens, your teeth may look yellow (since dentine is this colour) and you are more likely to get tooth decay.
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