Chewing Gum Can Be Good For Your Teeth

Serving Phoenix, Arizona

One of the old myths is anything you enjoy has to be bad for you.  Fortunately with chewing gum, especially sugarless, that old myth is outdated.  Chewing gum can actually be good for your teeth.

If you are out and about and do not have a toothbrush and toothpaste, gum is the next best alternative to brushing.  It helps clean the surface of your teeth as you chew.  Even a greater benefit, it promotes the flow of saliva.

Increased salivary flow can have many positive benefits.  It has enzymes that digest carbohydrates.  It contains antibodies that fight tooth decay.  It contains buffers that neutralize the acids that eat at your teeth.  Saliva also contains minerals that help rebuild parts of your teeth that have been attacked by decay producing acids.

This repair process by your saliva is an important part of fighting tooth decay.  So when you chew gum and stimulate the flow of saliva, you have positive things happening in your mouth.  The only exception is if you are chewing gum with sugar.  If you chew only while the sugar lasts and then discard it, you will get a sugar build up on your teeth which will negate the benefits of increased salivary flow.

There are so many great flavors of sugar free gums on the market today.  Do yourself and your teeth a great service and find sugar free favorites and enjoy as often as you like.  At Desert Smiles we want to spend our time creating the best in Phoenix cosmetic dentistry.  Not fixing cavities that sugar free gum can help prevent.

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602.978.1790

18275 N 59th Ave Bldg C, Ste 114Glendale, AZ 85308