The Relationship Between Chewing Gum and Your Oral Health: Benefits and Drawbacks

If you have a habit of chewing gum after a meal, you are promoting good dental health and preventing an emergency trip to the weekend dentist in Stockton. Gum chewing makes your mouth produce more saliva, which washes away the acid created in the mouth. Sugarless gum has proven to be effective in preventing tooth decay. Sadly, chewing gum with a lot of acid or sugar content can cause damage to your dental health.

The Science Behind Chewing Gum and Saliva Production: How This Affects Your Mouth?

The act of chewing gum enhances the flow of saliva and volume. It enhances in response to chewing and taste stimuli. When we eat food, the fermentable carbohydrates are broken down by salivary amylase and used by the plaque-causing bacteria as food. These acids minimize the PH level in the mouth, making it more acidic. When this happens, it starts dissolving the essential minerals from the surface of your tooth, resulting in the tooth decay process.

Increased saliva flow in the mouth is not acidic and helps to remineralize teeth. Clinical studies have shown that chewing sugar-free gums for nearly 20 minutes a day after meals can prevent tooth decay.

Try to find chewing gum containing ADA seal because it will ensure that it is free of sugar. The American Dental Association still recommends using dental floss and brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste. Getting preventive dental care is also pivotal in improving your general well-being.

Types of Chewing Gum: Which Ones Are Best for Your Teeth and Gums?

Chewing gums comes in different forms, flavors, and shapes. It includes:

Liquid Filled Chewing Gum

Liquid-filled chewing gum contains a large amount of liquid flavor or/and sweetener in the mouth.

Sugarfree Gum

These gums contain artificial sweeteners to provide the taste.

Wrap Gum

Wrap chewing gums are in the form of a cube, cylinder, or chunk.

Stick Gum

This type has a flat and thin gums slab resembling the shape of a rectangle.

Bubble Gum

Bubble gum allows the individual to blow bubbles from it.

Ball Gum

This chewing gum is like the shape of a ball.

Functional Gum

This chewing gum has a function linked to it. For example, the chewing action releases essential minerals and vitamins to the body.

Note: This list is not complete.

Choosing sugar-free gum is the best gum because it eradicates carbohydrates and food bits from the mouth.

Pros of Chewing Gum

Chewing gum can be risky and helpful for your teeth, depending on the type you chew.

• It minimizes tooth sensitivity in your teeth to sweets, cold, or hot things.
• Sugarless gum has xylitol that prevents tooth decay-causing bacteria from spreading all over the mouth.
• Chewing sugarless gum is beneficial for individuals with dry mouths. It enhances saliva production and minimizes the risk of dental erosion.
• Increased saliva flow due to the act of chewing has more phosphate and calcium that makes tooth enamel strong.

Cons of Chewing Gum

• Chewing gum on one side of the mouth can cause an imbalance of jaw muscles or temporomandibular joint disorder in the jaw.
• It can also result in irritable bowel syndrome, which results in abdominal pain and bloating.
• Constant chewing of sugar gums can cause tooth decay and other oral health issues. The sugar contained in them damages tooth enamel slowly mainly if you neglect your dental hygiene routine.
• If you have silver fillings that contain mercury, chewing gum could release it into the body.

For more oral health tips, call our Stockton dental office.

Choosing the Right Gum for Your Oral Health Needs

Before you choose chewing gum, consider the following factors.

Packaging

Chewing gums are available in alluring packaging in different sizes. You can select a whole box or a single-piece packet.

Flavor

There are also different flavors to choose from such as strawberry, mixed fruit, mint, etc.

Ingredients

You must also be familiar with the different contents present in chewing gum before you take it.

• Softeners: It helps to retain the moisture of gum to maintain a soft consistency.
• Gum Base: Gum base is a synthetic rubber that provides the needed texture to the gum.
• Flavors: Flavors offer a great and long-lasting taste to the gum.
• Sweeteners: This component adds flavor to the gum. The most commonly used sweeteners include sugar and corn syrup.

Get an advantage of general dentistry in Stockton at Laguna Dental & Orthodontics today.