A Guide To Avoiding Tooth Damage
This guide will help you to understand some of the many ways you can avoid injury, damage and other problems to your teeth. Review the information here and do your best to make any necessary changes to your lifestyle to prevent problems:
Don't play sports unprotected
It doesn't matter if you are involved in a type of sport that requires a protective dental guard or not, if there is any chance of your mouth taking a blow, then you should make your own decision to wear one anyway. You can get them at stores where they sell sporting gear, but going to the dentist is generally the best so you know you are wearing a quality form of protection.
Know when to wear a protective face mask
You may not always think about wearing a protective face mask if you are doing certain chores or enjoying certain hobbies if there isn't an obvious threat to your health. However, there are things that you may be doing that will put your teeth at risk of damage without knowing it. If you are mixing cement, sand blasting something or doing anything else that has small hard particles or dust in the air around you then these things can get in your mouth. They can scrape away at the enamel which is the protective coating your teeth have. This can eventually cause soft spots in the enamel, cavities or even tooth decay.
Don't open bottles with your teeth
If you go to open your soda, alcohol or water bottle only to find that the cap won't loosen and your hand starts to get red and irritated, then you may think it would be so much easier to just twist the cap off with your teeth. However, this is a great way to ruin your teeth. You can end up fracturing, chipping, breaking or even loosening your teeth this way. Your best bet is to have someone else open the bottle, or you can put an empty balloon over the cap and use it as a grip; this generally helps the bottle open much easier.
Don't bite on things out of habit
Your teeth should be used for eating, not for biting your nails, chewing on ice cubes out of habit or biting on anything else that puts unnecessary stress on them. Anytime you use your teeth for things they aren't intended for, it puts more wear on them than what is necessary and that means possible damage and dental issues that could have been avoided.
Talk to a family dentist to learn more.
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