Brushing teeth, using dental floss, and not forgetting solid food — these simple habits help prevent cavities. Dentist Aralbek Tasbulatov explained why some people's teeth decay faster, how to properly care for the oral cavity, and why vegetables and fruits are needed for prevention. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
— Aralbek, tell us why some people's teeth decay quickly, while others have almost none?
— The main cause of caries is the effect of bacterial acids on enamel. However, the exact mechanisms determining why, with the same hygiene, some people's teeth decay and others' do not remain a subject of study. Essentially, it depends on a unique combination of biological and genetic factors. For example, saliva neutralizes acids and saturates enamel with minerals. But its buffer properties and volume depend on genetics, general health, and medication use.
Moreover, hundreds of types of bacteria live in the oral cavity. Scientists are still investigating why some people have a predominance of cariogenic bacteria and how exactly the composition of this microflora is inherited.
— Still, are there any criteria for assessing dental health?
— Yes, of course. During the initial visit, dentists carefully examine and assess the oral hygiene index and resistance. That is, for each patient we calculate the DMFT index. DMFT stands for decayed, missing, and filled teeth.
According to the rate of caries progression, it is divided into three forms.
Compensated form of caries — when there are zero to four teeth in the mouth, including missing, decayed, and filled teeth.
If we see such a picture, we understand that the patient's tooth decay process is slow and the body is successfully coping with the pathology.
The second form is subcompensated. This is when the doctor counts 4 to 8 teeth in the patient's mouth that require treatment, are missing, or filled. Here it is not so critical yet, but it is clear that the dental disease is progressing.
The third is decompensated, where the number of treated, decayed, or missing teeth starts from eight and above. This is an acute form, where the process from the stage of a white spot to deep destruction takes only a few weeks. Usually, there is severe pain from cold, hot, and sweet things. And destruction quickly turns into pulpitis or periodontitis.
— Do the causes of tooth damage still often start with poor hygiene?
— Yes, caries develops where there is a good environment for it. And this is not necessarily something sweet. Therefore, it is believed that if a person has poor oral hygiene, they have a very high predisposition to caries.
— And will two minutes of brushing in the morning and evening solve the problem?
— According to WHO recommendations, prevention of dental diseases is cleaning the oral cavity twice a day. Also, after eating, it is recommended to rinse the mouth, use chewing gum, dental floss, and irrigators.
In fact, two minutes is the minimum. You should even try for up to three minutes. And if you brush for less time, almost 50% of plaque and food between teeth remain.
I also want to emphasize that it is necessary to eat harder foods to promote self-cleaning. Carrots and apples work very well in this regard.
Recently, everyone eats mostly processed food. Therefore, many people do not have the self-cleaning process to the proper extent. When was the last time you ate raw carrots? Now everyone eats softer, easier-to-chew foods. Although this leads to more dental plaque remaining on the teeth.
Earlier, Aralbek Tasbulatov told Kursiv Health how whitening works, what its main drawback is, and whether there is an alternative.
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