You know that eating the right food can make you healthier, but sometimes eating the right food to keep your dental health in check is more difficult. In an age where there is a constant flood of processed food filled with preservatives, sugar, salt, and starch, creating a diet that helps maintain your overall health can be a challenge. You can ask your dentist for advice so you won’t have issues with plaque, tartar, and even wisdom tooth removal, but sometimes the best information is from a nutritionist. Here are some pieces of advice that nutritionists give to help you and your teeth stay healthy.
Go Natural
The best food for keeping your overall health is natural food. Fruits and vegetables have the vitamins and minerals you need, but they also have the sugary sweetness many of us crave. Apples, cranberries, and raisins can give you the sweetness you want, while carrots, celery, and leafy greens like spinach, mustard, and kale, are low in calories but high in calcium and folic acid. They can help build up your teeth’s enamel and prevent gum disease.
Carrots, celery, and apples provide the crunch you need to promote saliva production. Saliva lessens the growth of saliva, and the crunchiness of these fruits and vegetables act as a kind of natural toothbrush that removes food debris in teeth.
Use Dairy Products
Milk, cheese and yogurt and all other dairy products contain calcium. That can strengthen not only your bones but also your teeth. However, make sure to choose unsweetened milk, as most milk sold in supermarkets contain preservatives like sugar so that they can keep for a longer time.
If you are not fond of drinking milk, a bit of cheese and yogurt in your diet could help. If you suffer from lactose intolerance, there are substitutes such as soy, macadamia, coconut, and even almond milk. You could also look for fermented cheese, lactose-free yogurt, and sherbet.
Drink More Water
Staying hydrated is not only good for our skin, but it’s also good for our teeth. It enables saliva production and ensures that your system is functioning well and absorbing the nutrients you consume. Also, fluoride in water prevents cavities and dental decay, so many countries put fluoride in their water supply.
Drink Coffee and Tea
Many people might find this counter-intuitive, especially since coffee and tea can cause discolouration and even weaken your teeth’s structure. Still, they both contain polyphenols, chemicals that have antioxidant properties. They can reduce inflammation and prevent bacteria build-up, especially when you use water with fluoride.
The Nutrition Gap
We often create a diet based on what we think our body needs: more protein, more carbohydrates, more vitamins, and minerals. But sometimes our food choice might not agree with what our teeth need. Starch and sugar in natural food such as rice and fruit can be beneficial, but too much sugar can affect our teeth, which could eventually lead to cavities and tooth decay. Sometimes we might need to hear it from a professional, so we would do what is essential for a healthy life.