Lifestyle

9 Foods That Harm Your Teeth You Probably Didn’t Know About

2020-08-05 , 6:35 pm

Everyone strives to have a healthy smile. We work hard to maintain a beautiful set of teeth by visiting the dentist regularly, brushing and flossing twice a day and avoiding sugary stuff that harms the teeth.

However, we realised that there is other seemingly healthy food that is actually NOT healthy for our teeth.

Here are 10 of them.

Tea

If you are a tea lover, you may want to think twice after reading this. Tea contains fluoride and while the human body needs fluoride, too much of it weakens the bones and teeth.

To make it safe, do not drink more than four cups a day and please, do not save money by buying cheap teabags!

Dried Fruits

Dried fruits are generally bad for health because of their high sugar contents.

They also contribute greatly to the decay of teeth because of the coating of sugar that they leave on your teeth.

“Chewy” dried fruits such as apricots make things worse because they stick the sugar to your teeth, leading to tooth decay and damages to the enamel.

Food That Is High In Starch

Similar to dried fruits, when you chew on food that is high in starch content like bread, macaroni or potatoes, your teeth mash them into a sugary paste which gets stuck between your teeth.

The starch encourages the growth of dental plague and further damages the teeth when it is converted to sugar.

Tomatoes (Or Any Stuff That Has Acid)

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Tomatoes are acidic. All types of tomatoes share the same acidity, not just the fresh ones and if you eat too much of them, the acidity within the tomatoes will wear away your tooth enamel, increasing sensitivity to your teeth.

Actually, it’s not just tomatoes. Other products that have low pH levels like pickles, cranberries and even coffee will harm your teeth too.

Popcorn

You’re probably wondering, “Popcorn?!”

This food carries a “double attack”.

The high sugar content sticks to your teeth but before the sugar can do you in, you might accidentally bite down hard on the popcorn seed which can potentially chip your tooth.

So the next time you’re digging into one (since we can go to the cinemas again liao), make sure to bite down gently and feel around with your tongue.

Ice

ReaderBao99: Eh, this one no sugar leh.

Correct, but this one is hard. Most people, when they have a piece of ice cube in their mouths, tend to chew on them.

But similar to popcorn seeds, the ice cubes can lead to dental emergencies like “dental emergencies such as chipped, cracked, or broken teeth, or loosened crowns.”

Suck on them on a hot day but never bite down.

Potato Chips

The glorious snack that we cannot do without is, in fact, another harmful food for our teeth. Chips are made up of fast carbohydrates that turn into glucose when mixed with saliva.

It can lead to a cavity and also causes dental plague.

Just remember to floss the next time you eat some chips.

Red Wine

Red wine is hailed a healthy drink if taken moderately. While it is true that no harm comes to our body, red wine turns teeth into a shade of grey that is kinda unsightly.

Here are a couple of ways you can try to get rid of that, which includes brushing your teeth before you eat.

White Wine

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White wine is generally acidic in nature and it causes harm to enamel, leading to sensitive or fragile teeth.

Lovers of white wine might want to drink in moderation as it’s said to be higher in acidity level than red wine.

However, the National Health Service has come out to say that the study behind the comparisons between the two wines (which was published in Daily Mail) is not representative of real life.

Still, drink in moderation, please.