As we all know alcohol can have negative effects on a person’s overall health. But were you aware that alcohol consumption can affect your oral health? In fact, alcohol can cause damage to your gums and raise periodontal disease risk factors. Poor oral hygiene is a common trait in alcohol users. This increases drinkers susceptibility for periodontal disease. Yet maintaining a good home care routine and regular dental checkups, as well as professional cleanings, can decrease the risk of decay or other oral health problems.
Teeth
Teeth are the first thing alcohol comes in contact with when entering the mouth. Causing these to become directly affected by it. Mixing liquor with dark sodas or drinking red wine, will definitely ruin a white smile.
Furthermore, alcohol dependency pretty much implies high plaque levels. As well as a higher likelihood of suffering from permanent tooth loss. Heavy drinkers are considered to be women who consume more than 8 drinks per week. Or men who consume more than 15 drinks per week
Although an alcoholic is more likely to have oral health problems. Moderate social drinkers also may suffer from decay and other oral health problems. Moderate drinkers are those women who only drink once a week or men who drink twice a week.
Whatever your relationship with alcohol is, tooth damage increases if you chew ice. It can break your teeth. Citrus in beverages like a squeeze of lemon provides enough acid to etch away at tooth enamel.
Although we must mention that red wine has been proven to kill oral bacteria. Called streptococci, which is associated with tooth decay.
These are reasons why alcohol can sustain damage to your teeth:
Sugar Content
Sugar intake can be a major risk factor in tooth decay. We already know that the bacteria in our mouth lives on sugar. So sipping on sweet drinks offers that bacteria plenty of fuel to thrive. By choosing beverages that are lower in sugar you can lower your risk factor.
Dehydration
Drinks high in alcohol dry the mouth. Saliva keeps teeth moist and helps to remove plaque and bacteria from the tooth’s surface. You can try to stay hydrated by drinking water in between drinks. You can also chew sugar-free gum or pop a mint on your tongue between drinks to increase saliva production.
Staining
Aside from the sugar content staining your teeth. The color in beverages comes from chromogens which attach to tooth enamel. That’s been compromised by the acid in alcohol, and stain teeth. One way to bypass this is to drink with a straw or rinse your mouth with water between drinks.
Beer can also stain teeth because of its acidity similar to wine. That makes teeth more likely to be stained by the dark barley and malts found in darker beers.
Sangria and similar drinks with deep hues not only turn your teeth red. It also can result in long-lasting discoloration and overall dullness. You counteract vibrant drinks with a whitening toothpaste
