The Wisdom Tooth

Consumption of excessive sugars can adversely affect your health in many ways.

Everything that we consume has an effect on our body, whether it’s our teeth, our gut or even our hair and skin.

When we look at the effects in the mouth, sugars are taken up but the bacteria that live there which then turn it into acid. This acid slowly dissolves the enamel on our teeth. If this continues over long periods of time it results in decay and a cavity.

In terms of the body, excessive consumption of sugars can lead to Type-II diabetes. Some information from Harvard has shown that “too much added sugar can raise blood pressure and increase chronic inflammation, both of which are pathological pathways to heart disease“.

As excessive dietary sugars can adversely affect your health, there are a few things you can do to minimise this. Some techniques include:

• Drinking water as your choice of beverage. Fluoridated tap water is one of the most cost-effective ways in preventing tooth decay.
• Minimise beverages like soft-drinks, sports drinks and even some fruit based drinks as they have high amounts of added sugar. A 600ml bottle for soft-drink contains over 16 teaspoons of sugar.
• Eat a varied diet with lots of vegetables and un-sweetened dairy products.
• Avoid acidic foods and drinks.

Some great healthy recipes can be found at the Heart Foundation Website.

The World Health Organisation recommends the average adult consume up to 24grams or 6 teaspoons of free sugar per day.

Free sugars are sugars naturally present in food products such as honey but can also include sugars added to foods.

When reading the nutritional label on food products, check the amount of sugar per 100g that is in the product. Opt for foods that have up to 10grams of sugar per 100grams. 1 teaspoon = 4grams of sugar; so if you have a product with 20grams of sugar, think of eating 5 teaspoons of sugar and see if you feel like it.

Chewing some sugar-free gum for 20 minutes after a meal can prompt your mouth to produce more saliva helping protect your teeth against bacteria.

Sugars can adversely affect your health so like all things, enjoy sugars in moderation and always keep smiling!

1. Tip 1: Brush your teeth twice daily!
2. Tip 2: Visit your dentist regularly!
3. Tip 3: Floss the teeth you want to keep!
4. Tip 4: Sugars can adversely affect your health!

By The Wisdom Tooth 6 August 2021

Between causing bouts of discomfort on unwary mouths and hiding in dark corners, the wisdom tooth shares snippets of wisdom from the field of dentistry.