How Does Nutrition Effect Oral Health
Nov, 28, 2021
Nutrition and Oral Health:
Nutrition and health go hand in hand, as you may have heard famously, “you are what you eat.”
A well-balanced and nutritious diet is an essential factor in maintaining proper general and oral health. A diet that lacks the appropriate nutrients will leave you more susceptible to tooth decay and gum disease. Many standard precautions and healthy alternatives can be incorporated into your diet routines to avoid oral complications. In addition to what you can eat, there are daily oral hygiene habits that will contribute to the bettering of your oral health. Check out our 7 easy tips on how to maintain oral health!
Risks of a Non-Nutritious Diet:
A diet consisting of high sugars and low nutrients can lead to obesity, high cholesterol, type-2 diabetes, oral cancer, cardiovascular disease, and other diseases.
Prevention and Proper Nutrition:
Realizing the potential harms that a bad diet can bring you is the first step; taking action by controlling the foods you eat is the most crucial step. An easy way to set yourself up for success starts in the grocery store! Buy nutritious and, most importantly, low-sugar foods! High consumption of sugary foods commonly happens when snacking, so choose your snacks wisely! Here are some categories of snacks to avoid and alternatives to buy!
Snack Categories to Avoid:
Sugary drinks: soda, high sugar fruit juices
Sugary snacks: candies, high sugar
Salty and fried foods: potato chips, crackers
Sticky foods: sticky sugary foods like gummy bears, chocolate bars
Foods with ingredients: glucose, fructose, molasses, dextrose, honey, maple syrup
Tips to improve nutrition for oral health
Reading the nutrition and ingredient list of the things you buy is also very powerful. If you see many harmful ingredients like the ones stated in the list above, reconsider buying. There is almost always a better option in the same store. Look for more organic and lower-level sugar foods, and invest the time in the grocery store to buy what’s best fit for you.
It may be hard to incorporate some of these foods into your diet if you are used to sugary snacks. A great way to introduce yourself to healthy alternatives is to ease yourself in.
Healthy snacks!:
Yogurt with nuts
Hummus with naan bread
Guacamole with pita bread
Raw veggies with healthy dips
Nuts
Salads
Frozen or fresh fruits
Easy modifications to help eat healthier
- If you don’t enjoy fruits on their own, add peanut/almond butter to your apple slices
- If you don’t like drinking regular water, add cucumber slices, mint, citrus, or berries to your water
- Add a touch less sweetener to your coffee or tea every time. Eventually, you will get used to it
In Conclusion
It’s easy to get caught up in the hectic lifestyle and come back to old habits. An excellent way keep healthy habits active is to incorporate delicious additives into healthy foods like stated above! Make it interesting and exciting while keeping it low sugar and healthy.
It’s essential to be mindful of your daily eating habits, not only for your oral health but overall general health. Maintaining a proper nutritious and low sugar diet will not only help your oral health but will have you feeling better and more energized overall. Take the small action every day, and live with the benefits long term.
How to Find Us
Address
2929 Barnet Hwy #2310, Coquitlam, BC. V3B 5R5
Phone
+1 (604) 554-0244
info@aarkdental.com
