What do you drink?

There are lots of reasons why you should avoid drinking sugary drinks. Such as tooth decay, weight gain and type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers. We are focusing mainly on how what you drink can greatly affect your oral health

Most people know that a soft drink is not exactly a healthy choice. They know that sugar is bad for their teeth. What they may not know is that when it comes to soft drinks sugar is not the only concern, the acidic properties of the drink means that it harms your teeth as well.

A lot of people think that fruit juice, sugar free drinks and sports drink are much better options.  But these so called healthier options are just as bad for your teeth. This is because they contain acid  and some form of sugar .

 When you consume a sweetened beverages diet or otherwise. The acids in the drinks affect the enamel of the teeth. Then even more acid is produced when, the sugar combines with bacteria in the mouth. Acid weakens tooth enamel which can lead to tooth decay.

The fizz in a carbonated drink even in drinks like soda water/sparkling water harms your teeth.

This does not mean that you should not ever have any of these drinks, you should regulate and limit this drink as much as you can.

 If you do consume these drinks, here are some things you can do;

• you should rinse your mouth out with water. DO NOT BRUSH YOUR TEETH STRAIGHT AWAY wait at least an hour brushing your teeth, this is because the enamel of your tooth is weakened so rinsing your mouth out with water will neutralise the acidic environment.
• Drink it all in one go. Don’t sip on it slowly. Sipping means that your teeth are continually getting attacked by the acid and do not have time to recover.
• consume a soft drink, consume them with a meal. This is because you produce more saliva while eating, this helps to neutralise the acid in the drinks.

The best drink for your teeth is WATER. It has no acid, no sugar, no kilojoules and if you get it from the tap, it's free.