Put your hands up if you’re excited for Christmas! If you’re anything like us at Bite Dental, both of your hands just shot up. Christmas is filled with great food, great drinks, and great times. These are all things that we love, but our teeth may not. Your favourite Brisbane City dentist takes a deeper look…
Alcohol and your teeth
Christmas wouldn’t be complete without a drink or 10. But these drinks can impact your oral health and stain your teeth. The acidity in dark alcohols can compromise your tooth enamel, and the dark colours from the barley can then attach to the tooth enamel. A handy trick we recommend is drinking these drinks through a straw. This way the staining can bypass your teeth.
Alcohol can also dry your mouth. When this happens, your saliva is unable to keep your teeth moist and remove plaque and bacteria. It therefore helps to stay hydrated when you drink, for your head and for your teeth!
If you do experience staining during the festive season, here at Bite Dental Queen Street we can offer you teeth whitening treatments to brighten up your smile for the new year.
Christmas grazing and your teeth
The Christmas holidays are often filled with endless eating and no regrets. However, while it may be delicious, grazing can have significant impacts on your oral health. This is less about the sugar in the food, and more about the increase in exposure. The more you graze, the more you expose your teeth to sugar, the more chance that problems can occur.
When you eat, acids are produced in your mouth and the pH level falls, thus increasing acidity. This can cause destruction of tooth tissue as your saliva won’t have a chance to repair the damage before the next wave of snacking starts. If grazing isn’t a habit you can kick, this gradual loss of mineral tissue can lead to the development of a cavity.
If you feel that this is something you should take care of, we highly encourage you to come and visit us in Brisbane City in 2021. We will give you a full check-up and clean, to make sure we stop Christmas snacking from doing any serious damage.
Hard Foods and your teeth
Hard foods such as pork crackling and hard lollies can also spell trouble for your teeth. These have the potential to chip or crack your teeth. This can lead to serious decay or tooth extraction if not treated properly. It is therefore important to be aware of what you’re eating.
If you experience a crack or chip in your teeth during the Christmas break, you should seek dental attention as soon as possible.
If you didn’t manage to see book in with us before Christmas, we highly encourage you to make an appointment at your favourite Brisbane City dentist in the new year. This way, we can give your teeth the best present of all, an exceptional check-up and clean.
Right now, we are offering new patients a full check-up for $99. This involves a consultation with a dentist, a full check-up exam, and any necessary x-rays. You will be able to improve your oral health at your favourite dentist in Brisbane City.