Kick the sweet tooth habit

How many of us love to have a pack of biscuits nearby to nibble on, or a glass of juice, or better yet, a Ju-c to sip on while we’re working or studying. Bad idea. Along with “the brush and floss at least twice a day” and “use a fluoride toothpaste”, there is the adage, “limit in between meal snacking”.

I’m not going to insist that you not take that coffee break, in the morning and afternoon, I actually will encourage it once it prevents you from nibbling on a biscuit or sipping juice or coffee every half hour. Each time you eat or drink the bacteria in plaque produces acid that destroys the tooth structure, causing cavities. {{more}}Once you limit these in between meal snacks to two, the acid attack in your mouth only occurs five times a day. If on the other hand you’re drinking coffee and half hour later snacking and the drinking juice an hour later, you’ve just exposed yourself to two extra acid attacks, increasing your chances of developing cavities.

If there is a need to snack otherwise, why not eat healthy foods like a carrot and celery sticks or popcorn. These foods lack the sugar that the bacteria thrive on and their hard nature help to clean your teeth.

Dr. France is a dental surgeon.