Festive Fun In A Tooth Friendly Manner!

Festive Fun In A Tooth Friendly Manner!

Here are some handy suggestions to help keep your teeth and gums healthy during the festive season.

Most of us look forward to Christmas and the new year period. Not only is it a chance to meet up with friends and relatives but also, often, a time to let ourselves go and not worry about our diet or over consumption. We may pay for this in various ways of course, from a hangover to a few extra inches on the waistline. Hangovers will go after a few hours, and with a bit of restraint, most of us can lose those extra inches not long after. There is another area where we might pay longer term though and that is with our oral health.

There are a number of things that we do around this time of year which can contribute to this and we will take a look at those now, along with suggestions on how patients of The Dental Centre Bedford can avoid, or at least minimise these festive risks.

Neglecting cleaning

Our routines tends to change over the Christmas and new year period, and especially when we have friends and relatives around. With all the cooking and preparation, to say nothing about any alcohol that is consumed, it can make for an enjoyable, but very long and tiring day.

When it comes to bed time, all that most of us want to do is to fall under a nice duvet and sleep until as late as possible the next day. Given that we will probably have eaten a lot of sweets etc during the day, it is essential that you don’t use this tiredness as an excuse to go to bed without cleaning your teeth. No matter how exhausted you are feeling, do make sure to brush your teeth well and for the full two minutes. Make sure to floss between your teeth to help remove any sticky toffees and other xmas goodies that might be trapped there too.

Alcohol

We mentioned alcohol above and a certain level of inebriation may well cause us to skip cleaning our teeth. This isn’t the only harm that alcohol can do though. Many of you will already have experienced a dry mouth from drinking too much alcohol the night before at some point in your past. As readers of our Bedford dental blogs will know, this dry mouth causes the number of bacteria to increase that can lead to gum disease. You can reduce this by making sure that you are well hydrated before going to bed, but limiting your alcohol intake is also a very good idea. It is worth remembering that alcohol is responsible for a high percentage of accidents and these could involve a blow to your teeth, potentially breaking, or knocking them out.

Sugar consumption

It is almost inevitable that a lot more chocolate and other sweet treats will be eaten at this time compared to the rest of the year. While we accept that this will happen, we do encourage you to eat these in moderation and to alternate with non sugary snacks to help you reduce the risk of tooth decay a little. One very beneficial thing to eat is cheese, especially following a meal as this helps to reduce the acidity in your mouth that can damage the enamel on your teeth.

Party ‘tricks’

Although alcohol can play a part in this particular problem, and perhaps makes it more likely, there is also an element of not being aware of the damage certain actions can have on the teeth. Perhaps we should start with the most damaging and most foolish and that is opening bottles with the teeth. While it may well be possible to open a bottle with your teeth, the risk of breaking a tooth, probably quite badly, is very high. There is also the risk that you could break the bottle and cause serious cuts to the lips and face. Quite simply, do not do this.

Less obvious things that we use our teeth for which they aren’t designed for, is to open packets or tear off sellotape. Although the damage is likely to be less severe, chipped or cracked teeth are quite possible if you do this…. oh and use nutcrackers to break into un-shelled nuts …. and not your teeth please!

Hydration and fizzy drinks

To combat the tiredness and the effects of alcohol, it is important to stay well hydrated. You will also feel generally better if you do this. We have already covered several reasons why you shouldn’t use alcohol for this purpose, but soft carbonated drinks can be harmful too. Not only are many of these high in sugar but are often acidic too. This can cause the tooth enamel to erode and put your teeth at risk of sensitivity and decay. If you do drink these types of drinks, try using a straw to avoid most contact with the teeth. Better still, drink plenty of water throughout the day. It will keep you well hydrated in a tooth friendly way and also help to flush away some of the sugars and ‘bad’ bacteria from your mouth.

Just following these few simple tips will help you to come out on the other side of the festivities with your teeth intact and your oral health in good shape. Hopefully there will be no accidents that require emergency dental care but if this does happen, please call The Dental Centre Bedford on 01234 819868. If we are not open when you need to see a dentist, please listen to the message on our answer ‘phone which will direct you to the appropriate place. Have a great Christmas holiday!