Obviously you aren’t interested in breaking a tooth – you’re interested in doing your best to avoid this serious type of oral health damage. However, by becoming familiar with the common ways we see patients damaging their dental tissue, you can become en expert on what not to do. Keep in mind that even with the best of intentions, little mishaps occasionally occur. Great news: By keeping yourself informed and making an effort to protect your smile, you can expect a grin that stays in one piece.
#1: Bite Into Something Hard Or Tough
One of the more obvious ways you might accidentally break a tooth is by biting into something that your tooth cannot break. Instead, your tooth absorbs the pressure and breaks. Here’s what you need to think about: If the food is quite tough, chewy, sticky, crunchy, or just plain hard – and it doesn’t immediately give in as it makes contact with your teeth – it’s probably too hard. Find another way to consume it (possibly cutting it into pieces ahead of time) or simply put it on your list of foods to avoid to protect your oral health.
#2: Let Decay Get The Best Of You
As decay does its thing (it destroys your tooth tissue), it leaves a hole behind. Then, that hole widens and it even becomes deeper. As your remaining tissue dwindles, so does the structural integrity of your entire tooth. Any attempt to chew may result in a break.
#3: Come Into Unexpected Contact
Didn’t think that lifting weights, rollerblading, playing on a soccer team, or otherwise might lead to a tooth-to-hard-object impact? It’s always possible. Avoiding oral health damage is often as simple as wearing protective mouth guard.
