The Beauty Diet (31 page)

To discourage tooth decay, condense your consumption of carbs, and avoid sticky, sugary treats!

When you crave a snack, reach for some sugar-free gum with xylitol. It increases the production of saliva, which is your body's natural mechanism for washing away food and neutralizing acid, plus xylitol can temporarily slow the growth of the bacteria that cause tooth decay. If gum won't do the trick, choose among the following smile protectors.

Apples.
Personally I love the way a crunchy apple makes my teeth feel. Apples are sweet but not sticky, plus they increase the flow of saliva—your best natural defense against cavities and gum disease.

Carrots.
Crunchy vegetables clean and stimulate the gums, helping to scrape away food particles. Foods with fiber have a cleansing effect, and they also stimulate saliva flow, rinsing away bacteria and keeping your mouth hydrated.

Cheese.
A small piece of hard cheese is good for your teeth. Cheese has calcium and other trace minerals in it, plus hard cheeses have been shown to generate saliva, which neutralizes the pH level in your mouth. That means your mouth is less acidic and therefore less prone to tooth decay.

Cranberries.
Scientists have discovered that cranberries contain a compound that can stop bacteria from clinging to
the teeth, blocking the formation of plaque deposits. However, cranberries are naturally bitter, so foods with cranberries usually have sugar added.

Dark chocolate.
This treat offers beauty benefits to our teeth! Researchers have discovered a cocoa extract that is more effective at protecting teeth than fluoride. A substance called
theobromine
helps harden tooth enamel, making teeth less susceptible to decay. Unfortunately, even high-quality dark chocolate is only about 3 percent theobromine, but the substance may soon be appearing in commercial toothpaste.

Kiwi.
One of my Top 10 Beauty Foods, kiwi has many beauty benefits and is a good choice for teeth because of its high vitamin C content (see Kiwifruit in
Chapter 2
).

Onions.
Granted, raw onions are not your typical American snack, but they do contain powerful antibacterial compounds that help fight cavities. Adding a few onion slices to your salad or sandwich could hurt your breath but help your teeth.

Raisins.
A study at the University of Illinois in Chicago found that raisins contain oleanolic acid, a phytochemical that in lab tests inhibited the growth of the oral bacteria that can lead to poor gum health and cavities. At a concentration of 31 micrograms per milliliter, oleanolic acid prevented
S. mutans
from adhering to tooth surfaces. At 62 micrograms per milliliter, it inhibited the growth of
Porphyromonas gingivalis
, a leading cause of periodontal disease.

Sushi with wasabi.
Known as
Japanese horseradish
, wasabi contains isothiocyanates that inhibit the growth of cavity-causing
S. mutans
, according to preliminary research.

In 2003, the average American consumed over 45 gallons of soda per year, according to
General Dentistry
magazine. You might think that lemon-lime sodas are better than colas or that diet soda is better than regular, but the sad truth is that no soda is OK for your teeth.

Most sodas contain huge amounts of glucose, fructose, sucrose, and other simple sugars. As you sip your soda, the bacteria in your mouth dance with joy. The longer you take to finish your drink, the happier they are.

Carbonated soft drinks also contain acids that can harm teeth, such as citric and phosphoric acid. One recent study that rated the effect of 20 different soft drinks on tooth enamel found that diet sodas were less erosive than their sugary cousins, but they were still harmful for teeth. The most erosive sodas in the study were 7Up, Coke, Squirt, Pepsi, and RC Cola. The least harmful were root beer and Diet Coke.

We have a tendency to sip drinks all day. With breakfast, we drink juice. At the office, we may have our own mug by the office coffeepot. On the run, we grab a sports drink. Before a presentation, we drink vitamin water. At a game, we drink soda. At a picnic, we have iced tea. When we start feeling tired, we have a caffeinated drink to stay alert.

All these nonsoda drinks can wreak havoc on your teeth. Sweetened sports drinks, energy drinks, iced teas, and lemonades all feed the bacteria that can cause irreversible damage to your dental enamel. Flavor additives such as malic, tartaric, and other organic acids are aggressive about eroding teeth.

If you must drink something other than water or green tea, use a straw. If you sip acidic drinks through a straw aimed toward the back of your mouth, your teeth are less likely to come into contact with erosive chemicals, which helps preserve the enamel.

The following foods and beverages can stain teeth:

Coffee