Nutrition and Your Teeth
Nutrition is an important part of the preventive concept of dentistry.
The relationship between diet and dental health is well established
in scientific literature, yet negative attitudes toward the application
of nutrition still exist. The integration of nutrition into dentistry
based on sound scientific evidence is what makes nutrition "work"
as an integral part of a good preventive dental program.
Nutrition is the science of how the body digests, absorbs, metabolizes,
and stores food in the development, growth, and maintenance of body
tissues and structures. Diet refers to the pattern of food intake;
while the study of diet and nutrition includes the understanding
of environment and of human behavior in the use of foods. Your teeth
themselves, bone structure that supports those teeth and the gums
and other (soft tissue) around the teeth are all influenced by nutrition.
The initiation, extension, or inhibition of oral disease is affected
by nutritional and dietary factors. These diet-nutrition factors
play a role in the responsibility of the host (your mouth) and the
virulence (existence) of the agent. For example, dietary carbohydrates
play a crucial part in dental plaque metabolism. The interrelationships
of the etiologic factors include:
- host susceptibility (teeth and periodontium)
- microflora (microorganisms)
- time (the time microorganisms have to make to interact with
substrates-carbohydrates to make plaque and the time plaque remains
on teeth)
- the person (with his/her life style, values, and health priorities).
Nutrition can also influence the flow rate, quantity, and composition
saliva. It can have an effect on the structure, composition, and
physiochemical properties of erupted teeth; and it can be involved
in the remineralization potential of erupted dentition. Nutrition
is important in the development, maturation, and continued health
of periodontal tissues and structures. Of course, nutrition exerts
an affect on a variety of biochemical systems as well.
Proper salivary gland development, salivary flow, and salivary
composition depend on adequate dietary protein. Protein deficiency
can lead to decreased salivary flow and decreased buffering capacity.
Increased caries susceptibility of protein deficient rats may be
the result of salivary dysfunction. It was found that protein deficient
diets fed to animals resulted in increased caries susceptibility,
smaller teeth, and delayed eruption time.
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