Preventing tooth decay

Tooth decay is caused by the bacteria in plaque digesting the sugar in your diet and converting this to acid. This then dissolves the tooth and forms a cavity which protects the bacteria and then decay quickly progresses. There are many ways that tooth decay can be reduced.

You can reduce the chance of tooth decay by:

• Removing plaque carefully. If there is no plaque, there will be no bacteria. However, there may be some areas that you will be unable clean, such as natural fissures in the tooth and cracks in old fillings where the filaments of a toothbrush cannot reach and if you have a sweet tooth decay can start in these areas.
• Reducing the sugar in your diet. Taking sugar out of your diet will stop tooth decay. However, this can be difficult as many foods have hidden sugars- such as some baked beans, crisps and ketchup- check the labels! 
• Reducing the frequency of sugary snacks. This is also very effective in reducing decay. Once you have a sugary snack or drink, the saliva will naturally re-strengthen the tooth after about two hours. If you have sugary snacks between meals, then your teeth will not have time to recover.
• Strengthening the teeth with fluoride (with professional advice). This will harden the teeth but you should discuss this with your dentist or hygienist first to determine the best way to do this in our case.