Many people deal with food sensitivity on their teeth. In fact, it is reported that as many as 40 million Americans have some pain in their teeth due to food sensitivity. Whether it is when it is hot, cold, acidic, sugary, or sticky, people can have it for many different reasons. This is most common amongst women and children and people with gum lines that recede.
Since this is so common, we wanted to help identify which foods you may be sensitive to, to help you avoid them. We also wanted to share tips on how to help this. Keep reading to learn what the experts at Cedar Falls Dentist have to say.
There are six very popular foods that may be causing you pain for several reasons. Here are those foods.
Soda: Soda is always something that should be avoided as it is loaded with sugar and is not only unhealthy for your teeth and gums, but for your overall health too. Soda also is acidic which causes many people to have sensitive teeth. That is one of the reasons why many people are sensitive to soda, there are two ingredients that can harm the teeth.
Ice cream: Once again, there are two ingredients in ice cream that can cause the teeth to hurt. These two ingredients are sugar as well as it’s cold. If you are sensitive to cold you lack the enamel that will insulate the nerves so some foods that have hot or cold temperatures become irritated easier.
Coffee: Hot foods can hurt the teeth and that is why many people are sensitive to hot coffee. If you add sugar to it, also can make it painful or more painful. Try adding some milk to your coffee to make it not as hot as lower the acidity levels. This may help a lot.
Hard candy: First, hard candy is bad for your teeth because the sugars can get stuck in between them easier, but hard candy can also cause teeth to chip or break. Hard candy can also cause pain sensitivity too. This is just another reason why you should stay away.
Citrus fruit: Many people find citrus fruit is too acidic for them. Some of these fruits include grapefruit, lemons, and limes. The acid in these fruits can even make your teeth more acidic. Keep in mind if you have ever noticed this so you know to continue to stay away from citrus fruit as it is a trigger for you.
Ice: If you love chewing on ice, stop immediately. Not only can is crack your teeth or chip them, but it may be the reason why your teeth are sensitive. Since ice is so cold, it will feel like a mini brain freeze, but to your teeth. Try and avoid chewing ice completely. In addition, if you really notice a huge difference when there is ice around, try and have your beverages with little to no ice instead.
Now that you know some of the foods and beverages that cause food sensitivity for people, we can now talk about what people can do about the sensitivity. The main solution is to find out what is hurting them and to stay away from that food or beverage. Most of the foods are not healthy, so it should not be a big deal that you can’t have them. It is harder for people that notice their teeth cannot handle hot or cold food or beverages. If this is the case for you, try not ever going too extreme. Make the water a little colder or don’t add as much sugar. These are small but effective solutions.
Nerves are very important in your mouth. They will allow pain to happen more than it should if they are not working correctly. If you have sensitive teeth, your enamel may have worn away which suddenly causes pain at times.
There are precautions you can do to help keep your enamel. Firstly, don’t brush your teeth too hard. Make sure to gently brush in a circular motion and keep your hand at 45 degrees. Second, don’t grind your teeth. If you grind your teeth when you are stressed out or sleeping, you may want to consider a mouthguard. When grinding your teeth, you are grinding away the enamel on it that should stay there. If you bleach your teeth to get the whitest teeth possible this may be making them sensitive and wearing away the enamel. Try taking a break and seeing if that helps at all. It’s important to let your dentist know about the sensitivity you are experiencing. This is to ensure there are no other issues going on like gum disease or a cracked tooth that needs to be investigated further.
Do you know more about food sensitivity now? We hope so. Remember, it’s very normal and nothing to be concerned about. Many children have sensitive teeth as they are developing. It’s important to try and notice which foods or beverages are hurting you (or hurt you more) so you can do your best to avoid them. Since every person is different, try and become your own detective. As we said, it may be something else you are doing such as whitening too much.
For more tips on food sensitivity or to speak with our dentist about any concerns, you may have, contact us today to schedule an appointment. We look forward to hearing from you.
