How to Avoid Or Fix Long Term Wear On Teeth

There are some healthy habits (and habits to avoid) that can prevent your teeth from wearing down…if you start them early enough in life.

And if it’s a bit late for that, there’s still plenty of dental treatments to help you repair the damage that can occur over the years, even in healthy mouths.

In this article, we’ll be discussing the causes of long-term wear on teeth, and how you can defend your mouth against the ravages of time. We’ll also take a quick look at the treatments available for wear on teeth.

The problems caused by teeth wearing away

Your teeth are protected by a hard outer surface called enamel. This gets worn down over time in two different ways;

Attrition – when the enamel is repeatedly ground or rubbed against another tooth or hard surface
Erosion – when the enamel is damaged by acids present in food and drink or bodily fluids.

Eventually, the enamel can wear away completely, exposing the dentine – a softer, inner layer of the tooth. Once the dentine is exposed, teeth wear away much faster.

At this point, the tooth’s integrity is at risk – the tooth is more vulnerable to infection, and the nerve within the tooth is more likely to become irritated by heat and cold, as it’s now closer to the surface.

Dental treatment is usually necessary once the enamel has worn through, due to the associated pain and resulting weakness of the tooth.

Why do teeth wear away?

Studies show that the most common cause of teeth wearing away is bruxism (teeth grinding), followed by gastric and dietary acid erosion.

Bruxism

Modern life is more stressful than ever, with four people in ten reporting a regular feeling of worry or anxiety. In order to survive in the modern world, it’s sometimes necessary to manage these feelings (or even put them to one side temporarily) so you can still take care of work or care commitments.

This doesn’t get rid of stress, however – it still finds ways to manifest in the body, often subconsciously. This can result in hunched shoulders, bitten nails, or grinding your teeth.

Teeth grinding (or bruxism, to use the medical term), is often something that sufferers will do in their sleep, as their body releases the stresses of the day. A person with Crowded teeth may find that their teeth wear down a lot more and a lot faster. Bruxism sufferers may be unaware of the problem – many people only find out as a result of a conversation with their dentist!

There are a variety of ways to deal with both the bruxism and the underlying stress that usually causes it. Yoga, counselling and meditative practices like Tai Chi can help.

It’s worth bearing in mind that bruxism isn’t always stress-related – it can also be caused by medication side-effects or muscular issues in the jaw and neck area.

As a practical and inexpensive measure, mouth guards can be worn at night or in times of stress to protect the teeth from further grinding.

Gastric and Dietary Acid Erosion

Acid is bad for your teeth. Controlling the amount of acid your teeth are exposed to is important – but of equal importance is the duration and concentration of acid exposure your teeth receive.

Acid is present in lots of foods and beverages (including alcoholic drinks), but a healthy balanced diet will help you manage the amount of acid left in your mouth, minimising erosion. Obviously, a good dental hygiene and toothbrushing regime will also help reduce the amount of acid your teeth are exposed to.

Sufferers of acid reflux or persistent regular vomiting of the kind sometimes seen in pregnancy may find that their condition has a detrimental effect on their teeth. This is called gastric acid erosion, and while it’s less common as a cause of long term wear on teeth, it’s a side effect that sufferers should be aware of.

To help control the duration and concentration of acid wearing away your teeth, it’s important to consider the role played by saliva in your oral health.

How Saliva Protects Teeth

Saliva doesn’t just dilute and wash away the acid on your teeth – it contains important minerals and nutrients that actually repair the enamel in a process called remineralisation. Limiting sugary foods/ drinks to mealtimes helps to reduce frequency in acid attacks which occurs when the natural PH level in a person’s mouth is disturbed.

Staying hydrated with lots of drinking water will help you produce enough saliva to reduce long term wear on your teeth, as well as neutralising acids and bacteria present in your mouth between meals and tooth brushings.

Avoiding poor lifestyle choices like smoking, drinking alcohol, and recreational drug use will help – these activities dry out the mouth, allowing acid and bacteria to remain for longer periods.

Some recreational drug use creates other unwanted complications for your teeth, too – drugs like amphetamine, cocaine, and MDMA (Ecstasy) can result in temporary bruxism and abnormal or excessive jaw movement.

Long-Term, Are There Side-Effects From Teeth Whitening?

While many tooth whitening treatments and products use semi-abrasive materials and hydrogen peroxide (a weak acid), the important thing to remember is that these treatments are intended for short term use only. Consequently, tooth whitening treatments aren’t considered a cause of teeth wearing away.

What Is the Best Treatment for Worn Teeth?

Fortunately, even if the damage to your enamel is irreparable, we’ve got several effective treatments that can keep your teeth healthy, functional, and attractive. Short term adult orthodontic treatment can help if you have crowded teeth. Crowns and porcelain veneers are relatively inexpensive and can be quickly and easily created to perfectly match the existing tooth.

For smaller areas of long term tooth wear, a white filling can be used. The earlier the damage is identified and treated, the more effective any treatment will be. Get in touch today to book an appointment, and we can identify any areas of risk or treatment required.