Dental Questions

Are your teeth sensitive to hot or cold?
Tooth sensitivity has many causes including:

• exposed roots
• Tooth Whitening
• Abraded or Eroded Teeth
• Cavities and cracked teeth

Are your teeth eroding or wearing away?
Dental erosion is caused by acid originating from the external environment or from within our own bodies. External dietary sources linked to erosion include soda drinks, diet drinks, alcohol, and sour acidic foods.  If you are pregnant, have gastro esophageal reflux disease, or have an eating disorder, your body can produce high acid levels that can lead to tooth enamel erosion

• Avoiding acidic foods and drinks helps prevent erosion.  If you have a medical condition, consult with your physician on how to prevent stomach acid from being regurgitated into your mouth. 
  

Is what you are eating or drinking causing cavities?
Many factors can increase your chance of developing tooth decay, including:

• Drinking soda and other sweet drinks
• Sugary and carbohydrate-laden snacks and foods
• Sugary candies
• Dry Mouth
• Drug and tobacco use

When you have tooth decay, you lose minerals from your teeth, mainly calcium and phosphate, because acid from bacteria attacks your teeth.  This may show as white spots at first, but over time loss of these minerals can cause cavities.

Do you have white spots on you teeth?
Excessive consumption of highly acidic drinks, such as sodas or sports drinks, can cause erosion on your tooth surfaces and increase your chance of developing these white spots.  The simplest way to avoid white spots from occurring is to avoid high acidic foods and drinks.  For many patients, however, this is difficult to do and teenagers in particular may consume large quantities of soda, which can cause white spots in a short period of time.

Do you have white spots on your teeth that have been there for a long time?
Healthy, normal tooth enamel should have a smooth, lustrous surface.  White spots can form due to the caries process producing enamel demineralization, or can be the result of fluorosis or infectious disease episodes.  White spots can also be idiopathic, meaning, no identifiable cause.  If plaque sits on the tooth for a long time with out being removed, especially at the gumline, the acid from the bacteria in the plaque "eat" away at the tooth and can cause white demineralized areas that can eventually lead to cavities.

Have you ever had dry mouth?
Dry mouth (xerostomia) can be caused by medications, disease, chemotherapy, smoking, drug use, and even stress.  Dry mouth can lead to severe tooth decay, sensitivity and oral discomfort.  Saliva is your body's natural oral defense system, delivering important minerals to your teeth to keep them strong and healthy.  Without enough saliva, you can suffer from mineral imbalance that leads to increased risk of tooth disease.

Are you being treated for cancer?
If you are taking drugs to treat cancer, or receiving chemotherapy or head and neck radiation, you may be suffering from dry mouth.  there may be less saliva in your mouth due to drugs and chemotherapy, and in the case of head and neck radiation, there may be no saliva present in the the salivary glands were irradiated.  In addition, nausea associated with chemotherapy can result in stomach acid present in your mouth eating into your teeth and causing dental erosion.

Insufficient or no saliva increases your chances of having tooth decay and cavities, and can also result in tooth sensitivity.  The loss of minerals caused by dental erosion on your teeth also weakens your teeth, further increasing your risk of tooth decay and sensitivity.  

Are medications making your mouth dry?
If you are taking medications, and especially if you are taking several, you may be suffering from dry mouth as a result.  More than 1,000 medications can cause dry mouth, including many common drugs for conditions including blood pressure, allergies, heart disease and depression.

Do you have indigestion or upset stomach symptoms?
If you suffer from gastric refllux, stomach acid can reach your teeth.  this acid can eat into them and cause minerals, mainly calcium and phosphate, to be lost from your teeth.  This is known as dental erosion.  Over time, if it continues, your teeth will lose enamel, then dentin and may appear thinner, yellow and/or shorter.  Your teeth may also be sensitive once the enamel is lost.  It's important to prevent dental erosion from happening to keep your teeth healthy.

*Info from GC America