Enamel helps protect teeth from everyday use, such as chewing, biting, crunching, and grinding. Although enamel is a hard protector of teeth, it can crack and break. Enamel also insulates teeth from potentially painful temperatures and chemicals. When it erodes, you may notice that it reacts more to cold or hot foods, beverages, and sweets, as they can go through holes in the enamel to reach the nerves inside.
Perhaps the most common cause of enamel loss is due to routine tooth decay that most people experience as simple tooth decay. If left untreated, as we all know, cavities get bigger and bigger and can completely destroy a tooth. Enamel erosion is mainly caused by acids in the foods and beverages you eat. These acids wear down enamel over time, especially if you don't brush your teeth properly after eating acidic foods.
Dentin and pulp can also be exposed to bacteria, leading to tooth decay, tooth decay, and other unpleasant dental conditions. Friction, wear, stress, and corrosion (or any combination of these actions) can cause erosion of the tooth surface. If the enamel is exposed to destructive bacteria generated from sugars and starches, or to acids in citrus fruits and coffee, for example, the substance begins to break down. While fluoride is useful for preventing tooth decay, too much fluoride can cause problems such as enamel fluorosis.
Visiting your dentist regularly for routine cleaning and polishing will help preserve the appearance and functionality of your tooth enamel. Over time, enamel can break, wear out, or even be lost due to dental trauma, dental procedures, or problems with the supporting tissues of the mouth. You may want to consider joining your teeth if enamel erosion has caused discolorations in the front teeth. Not only does saliva increase the health of body tissues, it also protects enamel by coating teeth with protective calcium and other minerals.
Unlike a fractured bone that the body can repair, once a tooth is chipped or broken, the damage is done forever. Clenching and grinding your teeth also wears away tooth enamel, so be sure to ask your dentist about dental protection if you're prone to this. While calcium can be naturally repaired to some extent, the damage suffered over time can leave the tooth vulnerable to further enamel loss. The outer layer of teeth consists of enamel, a substance that protects against physical and chemical damage.
However, the main part of the tooth, the dentin, is the part responsible for the color of the tooth, whether white, whitish, gray, or yellowish. Some tooth enamel loss occurs naturally with age, but you can help stop harmful tooth enamel loss by following a regular oral care routine that involves brushing your teeth twice a day and flossing regularly. If you have any of these symptoms, you may have an oral health condition called tooth enamel erosion.
