The 12 worst habits that are destroying your teeth!
Save your teeth! There are many factors that can promote diseases and leave you in need of dental implants, crowns or full smile makeovers. Remember the best way to save money is keep your mouth healthy with prevention. Here we leave you with a list of the 12 worst habits that are destroying your teeth:
- Smoking. Nicotine darkens enamel and stains. It can also cause gum disease, which in turn loosen the teeth. it also gives bad breath, affects the taste buds … and can cause cancer in the mouth, lips and tongue (oral cancer). If there is one habit on this list that you must change urgently, this is it! Your mouth and all your body will gain immediate benefits.
- Use your teeth as a tool. If you usually open bottles with your teeth, they can fracture and wear out! They are also damaged if you use them to open the medicine bottles and carton or paper containers. Avoid this as much as possible!
- Grinding (bruxism). It loosens the surface of the enamel and can even loosen them. It also affects the jaw joint. Check with your dentist. You may even need to sleep with a special protector (night guard) so you do not do it unconsciously while you sleep. This might also signal you are under a lot of stress so you should try to identify the problems that are affecting you and work on them.
- Nail biting. In addition to not being hygienic and making your fingers look bad, this habit increases the chances of you suffering from bruxism.
- Cough drops. Apart from its medicinal value for a sore throat, you should not suck on these drops as if they were harmless. They are made of sugar, the same as candy! Brush your teeth after eating them.
- Drink coffee. Its color and acidity can stain a tooth easily, turning it yellow.
- Drink wine. Both red wine and white wine contain acids that deteriorate the enamel of the teeth, making them more vulnerable. The red wine also contains a pigment that stains. To reduce the harmful effect of wine, you should rinse your mouth with water after drinking it.
- Drink soft drinks. Not only candies and sweets are full of sugar. Also soft drinks have a good amount, not counting the acids they contain, and they affect the enamel; these acids, incidentally, are also in diet drinks that do not contain sugar, so even then, they can affect you!
- Chewing ice. Yes, it’s just frozen water, refreshing, sugar free … but it’s hard! Chewing ice can fracture teeth or cause damage to them.
- Brushing your teeth very hard or with a hard bristle toothbrush. Doing can cause retraction of the gums and excessive sensitivity in them.
- Brushing with horizontal strokes. You can wear the enamel of the teeth. The correct thing is to brush them with short circular movements on each teeth, making sure to try to reach on the crevices between them.
- Using whitening toothpaste without a prescription. It’s true! Whitening toothpastes are way more abrasive to the enamel than regular toothpastes which means you could end up with increased sensitivity and other problems. Before buying one, check first with your dentists to see if this is the right option for you!