How Fluoride Helps Teeth
Many people may not know or understand how fluoride helps teeth
- Many people may ask how fluoride helps teeth with the many critics of fluoride
- Fluoride supports teeth in many ways, such as remineralisation, protecting teeth and combating harmful bacteria
- Remineralisation helps attract minerals like calcium to areas of damage on teeth
- The protectiveness of fluoride through remineralisation helps teeth become more resistant to acids from bacteria
- Fluoride’s ability to keep bacteria from growing and attaching to teeth makes fluoride an effective antibacterial
How can fluoride help teeth? This is a question that many have posed to dentists across the globe. The answer is simple, fluoride helps teeth in many ways. Dentists and health organisations throughout Australia will tell you that there are many benefits to fluoride, especially for teeth. So, this leads us into our topic of how fluoride can help teeth. This article focuses solely on how fluoride helps teeth, specifically the process in which it helps.
So, how can fluoride help teeth? Fluoride helps teeth in a variety of ways, such as remineralisation, protecting teeth from decay and combating harmful bacteria in the mouth. Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral that, in low levels, has been shown to prevent and repair tooth decay. This is accomplished by the fluoride coating the surface of the teeth and drawing other minerals like calcium to areas where demineralisation has occurred. This remineralisation helps repair teeth from early tooth decay as well as helping teeth become more resistant to tooth decay. This protective layer keeps bacteria that produces harmful, enamel-eroding acid from penetrating the enamel.
When fluoride enters the mouth, it coats the teeth in a thin layer. This layer provides protection to the teeth from bacterial acid and other harmful things such as sugary foods and drinks. This layer also produces a stronger mineral that is more resistant to tooth decay than the tooth enamel itself. This stronger mineral is known as fluorapatite which is more resistant to an acidic environment than the enamel minerals. This mineral is produced during the remineralisation process such as drinking fluoridated water or brushing with a fluoride toothpaste. It is this acid resistance that makes fluorapatite, and essentially fluoride, an important part of dental health.
Finally, fluoride has been shown to combat bacterial growth and attachment to the teeth. This is accomplished through fluoride’s ability to inhibit bacterial enzymes involved in the uptake of sugar. This helps give fluoride antibacterial properties for dental health. Fluoride protects the teeth with this ability to keep the bacteria from taking in the sugar needed for producing the enamel-eroding acids that are part of tooth decay. There are many products that offer this property of fluoride, such as over-the-counter products and prescriptions.
Fluoride is a significant part of any dental care routine
- The ways that fluoride assists tooth health makes it essential for dental health
- Low levels of fluoride are beneficial for preventing and repairing tooth decay
Fluoride helps teeth in many ways. Despite its many critics, fluoride is very helpful in repairing early tooth decay as well as preventing tooth decay before it starts. Fluoride is an important part of dental health for all Australians, whether it is through fluoridated water or low-level fluoride toothpaste. The benefits of adding fluoride to your dental care routine are pertinent for the health of your teeth. Look for over-the-counter products that contain low levels of fluoride to help you keep tooth decay from destroying your smile.