How Some Illnesses Affect the Health of Your Teeth
Illnesses can impact the health of your teeth, from stomach acid on teeth to excess sugar from medicine. When you’re sick, you may also be less inclined to keep your regular oral health routine. Here’s how some illnesses can impact your teeth and how you can take better care of them while you’re sick:
Stomach Illness and Stomach Acid on Teeth
Illnesses like the stomach flu can be particularly hard on your teeth. When you have the stomach flu and you vomit, stomach acid splashes against your teeth and gums.
Stomach acid, also known as gastric acid, contains strong acids like hydrochloric acid, potassium chloride, and sodium chloride. Stomach acid on teeth is bad news. Since this acid breaks down the contents of your stomach, it can do the same to your teeth.
Even though your teeth may feel yucky, it’s not great to brush right after vomiting. It’s best to swish water around your mouth with a touch of baking soda. We recommend waiting at least 30 minutes before brushing. Brushing immediately afterward rubs the stomach acid on teeth and expands the surface area that the acid touches, unnecessarily causing the acid to eat away at more enamel.
Sore Throat and Cough Drops
You avoided the stomach flu like the plague. But, you still caught a cough or sore throat. Keep this important tip in mind: soothe your throat with sugar-free cough drops.
Many of the popular cough drops on the market have added sugars to cut the taste of medicine. Sugar builds up on your teeth as you pop one cough drop after another. It might help to curb your cough, but it will wreak havoc on your teeth.
If you examine popular “natural” cough drop ingredients, the first ingredient is often sugar. Be sure to read the packaging thoroughly before committing to a cough drop regimen – it could be no better than sucking on a candy all day. If you’re looking to cut out any type of cough drop, another option to sooth a sore throat (without your teeth being exposed for a prolonged period of time) is the concoction of hot water, honey, and lemon. Just mix the juice from half of a lemon and a teaspoon of raw, high-quality honey into a cup of hot water.
Now you can properly attend to both your illness and your teeth. We’re one step closer to discovering if brushing your teeth helps to fight illness!
Without proper hygiene, bacteria in the mouth can reach dangerously high levels, leading to tooth decay and gum disease. Learn more about the connection between your oral and overall health:
