How sugar affects your teeth

You always hear it from your dentist, and you read it in just about every tooth care article you can find, avoiding sugar is one of the best ways to keep your teeth strong and healthy. But what is it about sugar that makes it so bad for our teeth? Sugar has always been an essential part of the American diet. From the bread and cereals we eat to our favorite carbonated drinks, almost everything we consume, sweet or not, contains sugar. But what makes sugar your teeth’s worst nightmare is that bacteria in your mouth (Streptococcus mutans) consume sugar for energy and, as a result, produce acid that damages teeth and causes cavities.

Reducing excess sugar slows the rate of tooth decay. But for the times when you just can’t resist the urge to eat that candy bar or drink that bottle of soda, it’s important to brush your teeth as soon as possible afterward since the decay process starts instantly as sugar comes in. contact with your teeth. Leaving your teeth soaked with sticky sugar for a long time gives the bacteria more time to produce acid that causes cavities and therefore more damage to your teeth.

However, you should keep in mind that not all sugars are the same, each of which has its respective health effects when consumed. There are good sugars like those that come naturally in foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. These contain essential nutrients that the body needs. What you should avoid are those from carbonated drinks, sweets and other processed products.

Sugar itself is not bad for you. Sugar poses its own benefits to the human body. For example, the saccharides found in sugar play an important role in fighting certain diseases. Health risks arise when too much is consumed. According to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, added sugar intake should not exceed 8 teaspoons or about 32 grams per day on a 2,000-calorie-per-day diet, a limit you can easily exceed by drinking a bottle of their favorite soft drink (See sugar content in soda).