Brittle teeth are also known as ‘fragile teeth’ which occur as a result of severe enamel wear/weakening. Enamel weakening/wearing can be caused by a lot of factors. These factors can be environmental as well as hereditary too. However, the insurance of optimum and perfect oral hygiene contributes towards the prevention of brittle teeth disease.
There are basically a lot of ways through which brittle teeth can be prevented. Some primary methods involve:
First and the foremost is the incorporation of a good quality fluoride toothpaste and soft brittle tooth brush in your dental routine. Fluoride acts as a very strong tooth strengthening material and the deficiency of fluoride can often lead to brittle teeth disease. Besides that, it should be taken into account that the teeth should be brushed and flossed at least twice a day to prevent any sort of future complication.
Brushing your teeth helps to remove the plaque built up in between the teeth of the upper immovable and lower moveable jaw. This ultimately prevents bacterial invasion in these narrow spaces and insures optimum dental health. This prevents brittle teeth.
On the other hand, flossing helps to remove that left over food debris which is utterly impossible to clean by the application of toothpaste and toothbrush. It helps to remove food debris from the narrowest spaces in our oral cavity and also promotes prevention of brittle teeth.
However, it is important to remember that brushing and flossing not only aids in the removal of food debris and ensuring optimum dental health but also prevent brittle teeth disease, gum and any sort of periodontal diseases.
Demineralization (wearing off/weakening of the enamel) can also be prevented by usage of a good quality antiseptic mouthwash. A good quality mouthwash helps to remove the sticky film of bacteria from the teeth and the tongue. This at the end prevents brittle teeth.
Other than that, after considering all the factors, everything depends upon routine check-ups at the dentist as well. A dentist pays keen attention and monitors the problem as per the severity of the case to provide the most effective medical intervention.
In addition to that dietary factors play a major role in the prevention of brittle teeth. Cutting off/limiting foods like sweets (sugary stuff) or too much acidic food from the diet helps to prevent enamel weakening (enamel weakening can lead to brittle teeth). This plays a big role in the maintenance of oral health by making teeth less susceptible to damage/decay.
In order to prevent brittle teeth disease and strengthen enamel, increased intake of calcium, apple (because it has iron) and green leafy vegetables is highly recommended. All of these foods contribute towards making the enamel strong.
Lastly, to finish up, sidestepping habits like clenching and grinding of teeth also help to prevent enamel weakening making sure that the brittle teeth doesn’t occur.
By considering all these factors, it is guaranteed that you can live without any sort of dental complications for a life-long time.
What Causes Brittle Teeth in Adults?
Brittle teeth causes in adult can originate due to a number of factors. Some key factors involve:
Bruxism, or teeth clenching/grinding normally occurs during the period of sleeping or at the times of stress. Bruxism causes severe grinding of the teeth of the upper immovable jaw with the teeth of the lower moveable jaw. As a result, the person suffers from a lot of dental issues. Some primary issues involve the weakening of enamel due to continuous clenching/grinding of teeth. This not only makes the brittle teeth but also promotes demineralization.
Erosion or demineralization of enamel can also be caused as a result of increased uptake of too much acidic food. Acidic food is very much invasive in nature and causes severe destruction of the enamel by interfering with the natural composition of the enamel (i.e: calcium phosphate).
Another cause of brittle teeth disease is acidic reflux. Acidic reflux often occurs in people who suffer from GERD (Gastrointestinal Reflux Disease). As a result of GERD, acidic refluxes become more frequent due to which antiperistalsis causes the HCL of the stomach to go back into the mouth again. This causes destruction of the enamel and causes brittle teeth.
Any sort of dental caries or gum disease if left untreated for a longer period of time can cause destruction of the enamel completely causing a lot of dental health issues. That is why routine dental check-ups are a must.
Brittle teeth causes can also make the teeth more prone towards fracture. That’s the reason why immediate medical intervention is the only solution to this problem.
Besides that increased nicotine and alcohol consumption also leads to the brittle teeth. Teeth’s enamel is composed of calcium phosphate which is very susceptible to get damaged by the action of nicotine and alcohol.
Sometimes increasing age can also be a cause of brittle teeth disease.
How To Fix Brittle Teeth?
Cure of brittle teeth involves as quick as possible medical intervention. The medical intervention depends upon the severity of the case, respectively.
The different options include dental contouring, dental bonding or either crowns/veneers. Sometimes, if the case has worsen to a very severe limit, then root canal remains the only available option.
Thus, concluding everything, the cure of brittle teeth directly depends upon the maintenance of proper and regular oral hygiene. This involves proper brushing and flossing of teeth. Cutting off/excluding sugary and acidic food from the diet and decreasing consumption of alcohol and nicotine.
