{"id":26840,"date":"2020-02-25T10:00:51","date_gmt":"2020-02-25T17:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cityorthopeds.com\/\/?p=26840"},"modified":"2024-04-09T11:48:50","modified_gmt":"2024-04-09T17:48:50","slug":"carbonated-drinks-a-tooths-worst-enemy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cityorthopeds.com\/2020\/02\/carbonated-drinks-a-tooths-worst-enemy\/","title":{"rendered":"Carbonated Drinks: A Tooth\u2019s Worst Enemy"},"content":{"rendered":"

The fact that carbonated, sugary drinks are bad for teeth won\u2019t be revelatory for most. Dental and orthodontic professionals have been railing against pop, energy drinks, and flavoured sodas almost since their invention. Cavities, tooth decay, plaque buildup, and discolouration are only some examples of <\/span>the havoc they can wreak<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Regardless of its well-known effects, pop continues to be one of the most popular beverages in Canada. It\u2019s really no wonder, as they\u2019re included on every restaurant menu, seen on every fast food billboard, and marketed with flashy and appealing ad campaigns.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve touched on the many problems of pop before<\/a>, but it\u2019s worth taking a deeper dive into exactly how bad carbonated drinks can be for your oral health and equipping you with the tools you need to keep your and your children\u2019s pearly whites looking and feeling as healthy as possible. An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but a pop a day gets the dentist to stay!<\/span><\/p>\n

The effects of Sugar<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

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The sugar in pop, energy drinks, and sodas is a kind of \u201cfermentable carbohydrate,\u201d which is the ideal food for the mouth-dwelling, tooth-damaging bacteria<\/a> that we all have. When the bacteria sit down to a sugary meal, they produce acids and enzymes that attack and degrade tooth enamel and proteins. This weakens and decays the teeth, leaving them open to attack from the myriad other foods and drinks that are out to get them. \u201cFermentable carbohydrates\u201d come in food of all shapes and sizes, running the gamut from raisins to jam to muffins, but carbonated drinks really pack a tooth-damaging wallop.<\/p>\n

You may be thinking that diet pop or sugar-free energy drinks could be a less harmful alternative, but that\u2019s unfortunately not the case. Even without the sugar content, carbonated drinks contain acids of their own. Studies<\/a> have shown that there is \u201cno significant difference between the erosive potential of sugared and non-sugar soft drinks.\u201d<\/p>\n

the effects of acid<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

Acids are notorious for their corrosive properties, and carbonated drinks have acid in spades. In fact, some of the most popular brands have even been used to clean old coins<\/a>. If they\u2019re capable of that, imagine what they can do to your damage-prone teeth. Like stripping the grime from a penny, soft drinks wear away at the hard tissue of the teeth, weakening the enamel. As the damage continues, so does the severity. Eventually, the acids will expose the softer dentin or even the pulp of the tooth.<\/p>\n

As if that weren\u2019t enough, these acids are a type of chelator, a chemical that traps calcium. Calcium<\/a> is one of the building blocks of healthy teeth; it holds them in place and strengthens the jaw bone. Chelators steal calcium away from your teeth, like stealing the foundation from a house. This is a perfect storm of tooth destruction that can cause severe cavities, discolouration, or pain. In patients with the worst cases, tooth erosion can result in abscesses, damage to previous dental work like fillings, or even tooth loss. The bacterially-produced acid combined with the phosphoric acid from carbonated drinks barely gives your teeth a fighting chance!<\/p>\n

Frequent sippers are at particular risk. Essentially, having a consistent pop intake subjects your teeth to an all-day acid bath, denying them to chance to let the pH levels inside the mouth return to normal levels.<\/p>\n

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