You love ice-cold cocktails or hot tea?
You adore sweet goodies and acidic food, but you can’t throw yourself into enjoying them, because your teeth are sensitive and every sip causes sharp pain?
Tooth sensitivity causes daily discomfort and pain to every second adult. This stabbing and sharp pain can occur when consuming hot, cold, acidic or sugary food and drinks, and can even happen when inhaling hot air.
From our article you can find out:
What is tooth sensitivity?
The primary compound of the tooth is the so-called dentine, which continues in microscopic canals where the terminal nerves run. Tooth sensitivity can develop either when the dental enamel protecting our teeth becomes thin or the gum recedes, leaving the epithelial cuff – the sensitive layer below it – unprotected, thus reducing the protection of the teeth and the roots. This causes a painful feeling, since the protective layer disappears, leaving the terminal nerves uncovered.
What are its signs?
Test on teeth sensitivity and its signs:
Feeling pain:
- by consuming cold and hot meals or
- by breathing cold air
- by brushing teeth
- by knocking teeth.
This is a regular sharp shooting pain that is quite unpleasant.
What causes tooth sensitivity?
Sensitive teeth, in fact, are signs of other diseases or problems
Sensitive teeth can be caused by several dental diseases:
- Worn dental enamel, which can be the result of brushing teeth with an excessively hard bristle tooth-brush, or excessively hard rubbing.
- Caries, worn, decayed filling and injured teeth, leaving the dentine uncovered.
- Erosion of teeth, caused by ingesting acidic food and drinks.
- Pyorrhea, which leaves the root free, the gums recedes.
- Gnashing of the teeth at night, which can be the sign of stress.
- Temporary sensitivity after dental treatment following such treatments as filling, removing tartar, crowning or whitening of teeth
What is the solution?
Does constant and unexpected pain make your days difficult? Are you afraid of drinking, or eating? Does the situation seem hopeless? You don’t have to worry anymore, there is a solution.
Start at your dentist’s!
Firstly, go to see your dentist! This visit is essential to discover the cause of tooth sensibility so that the dentist can treat it easily. It can be treated if the sensibility is caused by caries or an aged filling. If the symptom is caused by pyorrhea, then gum replacement by a paradontologist can be the solution.
Protect the enamel by brushing your teeth correctly
Do not rub your teeth too hard during brushing, because with this you won’t only remove the plaque from your teeth, but probably damage the tooth enamel as well. Brush your teeth with a soft-bristled toothbrush, in a 45-degree angle to your gum. This keeps the teeth and gum clean and strong. Brush your teeth twice a day, and use dental floss once a day. When you consume acidic foods and drinks, wait at least one hour before brushing your teeth.
Consult with your dentist on the appropriate toothpaste and use dental floss.
Eat right!
Instead of acidic foods and drinks, increase saliva production of your mouth with the following diet. Saliva provides protection against acids and bacteria, so consume:
- Fruits and vegetables that are rich in fiber
- Varieties of cheese
- Milk
- Natural yoghurt
- Green, or black tea
- Sugar free gum
Do not grind your teeth at night!
If you are tense, it can happen that at night you grind your teeth. Consequently, your tooth enamel becomes damaged, deteriorates, and grows thin. Purchase a tooth protector from your dentist, which you should wear during sleep, so as to prevent the grinding of your teeth.
Bruxism often occurs as a consequence of mental reasons, so it is necessary to consult with your dentist on it.
Give a rest to teeth whitening!
Do not whiten your teeth for a little while! Teeth whitening can cause temporary tooth sensitivity. So you should ask your dentist about how this procedure affects your teeth, and if it IS worth to go on with the treatment.
Treat your pain!
You can find many non-prescribed medicines for painkilling. Your pharmacologist is also ready to help you in choosing the best one.Several other forums recommend, for example, rinsing with coconut oil or saltwater, paste from clove and mixed with olive oil etc.
Do not forget that these pain killers and the other listed home remedies could treat your pain just temporarily. Therefore, it is worth visiting your dentist with the symptoms.
Nowadays, a lot of people suffer from tooth sensitivity; many do not treat the tooth illness behind this unpleasant problem. Please, keep in mind that treatment is important, but prevention is even more important. The above-mentioned tips help you in the prevention too. At the first sign of tooth sensitivity visit your dentist. Try to protect your tooth enamel, because once it is gone, it will not grow back.
Up to an ice cold cocktail!
