Every festive celebration involves festive food. Whether it’s cooking together with the whole family, sharing a meal with loved ones around a dining table, or sizzling some meat on the braai, people celebrate special occasions with their favourite dishes.
These festive recipes are unique for every celebration, culture, and occasion. However, there is one ingredient that is added to most of these meals, desserts and beverages.
Sugar!
Without realising it, people often overindulge in sugar over the holidays – even if they stay clear of the desserts. Sugar-based sauces like barbeque or tomato sauce, rich salad dressings, cocktails, and even pasta dishes contain hidden sugars. And, unfortunately, eating or drinking too much sugar over the festive season can cause teeth sensitivity.
A person experiencing teeth sensitivity may feel their mouth tingling, teeth aching, or an intense, sharp pain in their gums. There are several causes for these symptoms:
To avoid any of these oral hygiene problems, the best solution is prevention. Try and limit your sugar intake over the festive season as much as you can. Over and above this, make sure you practice the following hygiene routines during the festive season, especially after special meal times or celebrations:
By drinking water shortly after a meal, you are diluting the acids produced by unwanted sugar left behind in your mouth after eating.
After eating a meal, brush your teeth between 30 – 60 minutes afterwards with a high quality toothbrush. This will get rid of the acid that weakens teeth enamel and causes sensitivity.
There are various benefits of including a mouthwash as part of your daily dental routine. Over and above fresher breath, cavity protection and prevention against gum disease, it reduces teeth sensitivity. Use a mouthwash that is specifically developed for sensitive teeth, like Elmex® Sensitive Professional Mouthwash for Sensitive Teeth. Because it seals the small canals leading to a tooth’s nerve and regular use leads to a long-lasting protective layer, daily use over a long term effectively reduces teeth sensitivity.
*The above tips are provided for informational purposes only. Colgate does not accept any liability should the below recommendations have a contrary result to the intended result. Never disregard professional advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read in this article.
Your tooth brushing technique also has an impact on your teeth and gums. Back-and-forth scrubbing movements can in the long-term lead to receding gums. If some of the dentine is exposed this can particularly exacerbate the problem. Try to use more circular movements. Your dentist can give you more helpful tips. Brush in a circular motion. Your dental practice team can give you useful advice.
