Fruit is generally considered to be one of the healthier things we can eat. It contains vitamins, minerals, fibre and other nutrients, and most of us would probably benefit from eating more of it. While fruit is good for our body, this isn\u2019t always necessarily the case for our teeth.<\/p>\n
Fruit contains natural sugars, and many types of fruit are also acidic. Both of these things can have a potentially negative affect on the teeth. That does not mean that patients of Blue Sky Dental should stop eating fruit. Far from it. Fruit can be part of a healthy diet and there is no reason to avoid it simply because you are concerned about your teeth. It is more a question of what type of fruit you are eating, how often you eat it and how long your teeth are exposed to the sugars and acids.<\/p>\n
Tooth decay occurs when bacteria in plaque use sugars found in the food that we eat,\u00a0 to produce acids. These acids gradually attack and damage the tooth enamel and, over time, a cavity can develop. Although fruit sugar is entirely natural, it unfortunately has exactly the same effect.<\/p>\n
It isn\u2019t all bad news for fruit loving patients of our Chelmsford dental practice though. Fruit is also an important source of fibre and requires chewing. This makes it generally less concerning than food or drinks which are low in fibre and with added sugars. For example, eating an apple is not as damaging to your teeth as drinking a fizzy drink that is full of sugar. Indeed, a crispy apple can play its role in removing small food particles as it is crispy.<\/p>\n
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Fruits that contain acids especially, will likely soften the enamel surface of the teeth. This can leave them more vulnerable to erosion whilst in this state. Among these fruits would be oranges, grapefruit and lemons, but even less citric fruits such as some berries, can have a similar effect.<\/p>\n
Not at all. Although fruits can have a negative impact on your teeth, they are an important part of an overall healthy diet. There is no need to remove oranges, apples, berries or other nutritious fruits from your diet simply because they contain acid. What matters more is how frequently your teeth are exposed to it. Eating an orange with a meal is quite different from sucking on orange segments throughout the afternoon. The latter keeps the teeth exposed to acid for longer periods of time, not allowing time for the enamel to harden again.<\/p>\n
The saliva that we produce helps to neutralise acids and allows the mouth to return to a normal level of acidity after eating. Leaving gaps between eating then, is a good way to keep your teeth healthier<\/a>.<\/p>\n Dried fruit can be very convenient as it doesn\u2019t \u2018go off\u2019 quite quickly as some fruit tends to do. It is used by many people as a healthy alternative to eating sweets. On the whole though, it is probably less tooth friendly than whole fruit is. When fruit is dried, much of the water is removed and the natural sugars become concentrated. Sticky dried fruit such as raisins can also cling to the teeth and remain around them for some time. Parents often give raisins to children without being aware of the potential damage they can cause to young teeth.<\/p>\n Dried fruit is therefore not necessarily something you need to avoid completely, but eating it with a meal is generally preferable to snacking on it throughout the day as this leaves your teeth coated in sugars for a long period of time. It is also worth checking the ingredients of fruit-based snack products. Some contain added sugar as well as the naturally occurring sugar in the fruit.<\/p>\nIs dried fruit OK?<\/h3>\n
What about fruit juices?<\/h3>\n