Fluoride is a mineral that occurs naturally in all water sources, consisting of the oceans. Research has shown that fluoride not only minimizes cavities in children and grownups, however it likewise helps fix the early stages of dental caries, even before the decay is visible. Fluoride is the best cavity fighter to assist keep the whole household’s teeth strong– no matter their ages.
How Does Fluoride Strengthen Your Teeth?
When it reaches your teeth, fluoride is absorbed into the enamel. It helps to repair the enamel by replenishing the lost calcium and phosphorous to keep your teeth hard. This process is caused remineralization. When fluoride is present during remineralization, the minerals transferred into the tooth enamel help enhance your teeth and prevent dissolution during the next demineralization phase. Thus, fluoride assists stop the decay process and prevent dental caries.
Fluoride’s Significance to the Teeth
Let’s talk about how does fluoride help your teeth. Enamel, the outer layer of the crown of a tooth, is made of closely packed mineral crystals. Every day, minerals are lost and gotten from inside the enamel crystals. Losing minerals is called demineralization. Acquiring them back is called remineralization.
Demineralization begins with the bacteria in the plaque on your teeth. They feed upon sugar and other carbohydrates in your mouth and produce acids. The acids dissolve crystals in tooth enamel. The loss of enamel is balanced by remineralization. In this procedure, minerals in the saliva, such as fluoride, calcium and phosphate, are deposited back into the enamel. Too much loss of minerals without adequate replacement results in dental caries.
Fluoride helps teeth in two methods. When children eat or drink fluoride in little dosages, it goes into the bloodstream and becomes part of their establishing long-term teeth. Swallowed fluorides likewise become part of the saliva and reinforce teeth from the exterior. Acids are less able to harm tooth enamel strengthened by fluoride.
In addition, individuals apply fluoride straight to their teeth when they use a fluoride tooth paste or rinse. Both children and adults likewise can receive fluoride treatments from the dental professional. Fluoride used to the beyond the teeth assists to speed remineralization. Fluoride treatments, used in the dental workplace, likewise are strong enough to disrupt the production of acids by bacteria.
How is fluoride deficiency dangerous?
Fluoride deficiency in the body is most often caused by its low content in drinking water (less than 0.7 mg/l). Another possible cause is improper regulation of fluoride metabolism in the body. Lack of this substance weakens tooth enamel, making it more vulnerable to tooth decay. If a child is deficient in fluoride, ossification delays and bone mineralization defects can occur. In adults, long-term deficiency increases the risk of osteoporosis.
Fluoride Treatments
What does natural fluoride do for teeth? Fluoride in foods, supplements and water goes into the bloodstream through the stomach. From there, it is soaked up into the body. In children, the fluoride then becomes available to the teeth that are establishing in the jaw. Swallowed fluorides do not add fluoride to the teeth in somebody older than age 16.
Topical fluoride products are applied directly to the teeth. They include toothpaste, mouth rinses and professionally used fluoride treatments. Topical fluoride treatments are in the mouth for only a brief time. However, fluoride levels in the mouth stay greater for a number of hours afterward.
Professional fluoride treatments are given up a dental office. They are used as a gel, foam or varnish. The fluoride used for these treatments has a greater strength than over-the-counter or prescription mouthwashes or tooth pastes.
Fluoride supplements likewise are offered by prescription. They typically are scheduled for children who live in areas where the water system does not include sufficient fluoride. Children who need supplements get them from ages 6 months to 16 years.
Foods with fluoride for teeth
Here are some foods that can help make up for the lack of fluoride in the body:
- Beef, chicken;
- chicken eggs;
- milk;
- grains;
- nuts;
- potatoes, onions, spinach;
- apples, pears, bananas, strawberries;
- tea.
Fluoride in toothpastes
Fluoride concentrations in toothpaste are measured in ppm or percentages. Ppm stands for parts per million and refers to the number of fluorine particles per million. If it says 900 ppm of fluoride on the tube, that means there will be 900 mg of fluoride in 1kg. The higher the concentration of fluoride, the better the paste restores enamel. For preventive pastes it is 950-1150 ppm, for therapeutic pastes it is 1350-1500 ppm. Fluoride in pastes can occur in various compounds: aminofluoride, sodium fluoride, sodium monofluorophosphate, tin fluoride.
| Component | Name on the tube | What does it mean |
|---|---|---|
| Sodium monofluorophosphate | Sodium monofluorophosphate | It is ineffective, because due to the speed of decomposition, it begins to act only on 3-4 minutes of cleaning. |
| Sodium fluoride | Sodium fluoride | It has a powerful antibacterial and regenerating effect. The active ingredient reduces the ability of bacteria to process sugar into acid, which destroys enamel. |
| Aminofluoride | Aminofluorid / Olaflur | It is recognized as the most effective for the prevention of tooth decay. It forms a protective film on the surface of the teeth, from which fluoride enters the enamel and strengthens it. |
| Tin fluoride | Stannous fluoride | Proven effective, but has the side effect of first brightening the restored areas of enamel, and then leads to a noticeable darkening of the enamel. |
Fluoride Supplements: Who Requirements Them?
Children in between 6 months and 16 years of ages who do not drink fluoridated water ought to take fluoride supplements. They are readily available as liquids for more youthful children and tablets for older children. Either your pediatrician or your dental expert can prescribe them.
If your child has had cavities or is at high risk of dental caries, she or he should use extra fluoride. This will promote remineralization. Fluoride mouth rinses are suggested for children over the age of 6. They are found in the mouthwash section of a lot of stores.
Your dental practitioner can recommend fluoride rinses and gels if your child requires a higher level of fluoride. Carefully monitor your children when they use any fluoride item. Keep fluoride out of reach of children.
Can Fluoride Cause Teeth Damage?
Is fluoride bad for teeth? Fluoride is safe and efficient when used properly. All water-fluoridation systems are checked daily to maintain safe fluoride levels for drinking. Parents need to monitor using all fluoride items in the home.
Fluoride-supplement tablets must be saved securely away from young kids. These supplements are taken every day in small quantities. The dose can vary from 0.25 to 1 milligram each day. The dosage is based upon:
- The child’s risk of caries.
- The child’s age.
- The quantity of fluoride in the water.
In 2010, the American Dental Association’s Council on Scientific Affairs suggested fluoride supplements only for children who have a high risk of caries. This suggestions uses regardless of the quantity of fluoride in the child’s drinking water.
Dentists restrict the amount of tablets they prescribe at one time to reduce the risk of overdose. To avoid any chance of overdose, do not stockpile on fluoride tablets in your home. If you have any concerns concerning fluoride threats, speak with your dental professional or doctor.
Harmful fluoride doses are based on weight. For instance, the harmful dosage of fluoride for a 2-year-old child weighing 22 pounds is 320 milligrams. For an 8-year-old child weighing 45 pounds, the toxic dosage is 655 milligrams.
In comparison, an 8-ounce glass of water fluoridated to 1 part per million consists of 0.25 milligrams of fluoride. Because these fluoride products are used in such percentages, it is very tough to get toxic dosages when using fluoride products at home.
All children must use fluoridated toothpaste. If your children are younger than 6, beware about how they use it, nevertheless. Young kids are more likely to swallow tooth paste after brushing instead of spitting it out. Use just a pea-sized quantity of tooth paste when they brush. Motivate them to spit out as much as possible. Prevent flavored toothpastes that might encourage swallowing.
Swallowing tooth paste while teeth are establishing can cause a cosmetic problem referred to as fluorosis. Mild fluorosis looks like white specks on the tooth. For many people this is not visible. Swallowing larger quantities of fluoride can cause “mottled” brown enamel. This is unusual and occurs generally in areas that have naturally high levels of fluoride in the water.
Is fluoride good for your teeth?
There is no doubt that fluoride has a positive effect on the human oral cavity. The main benefits of the substance are:
- protection from the appearance of cavities;
- Strengthening of enamel;
- Preventing the formation of tartar;
- Fluoride prevents calcium leaching from the body;
- fluoridation prevents inflammation and bleeding of the gums;
- prevents the development of small cracks.
Before you use fluoride-containing substances, it is best to consult a dentist, who will select a set of drugs or prescribe additional treatment.
Is Fluoride Bad for Teeth?
Fluoride is harmful for the teeth and the human body as a whole only in very large amounts, but this happens very rarely. Routine treatment in dentistry is absolutely safe for the person, as it is carried out under the supervision of an experienced doctor, who carefully monitors the dose of the drug.
In the case of independent use of products containing fluoride, it is necessary to consult a dentist.
Only a dentist can determine if fluoride is good or bad for your teeth. Therefore, if you want to fluoridate or use products containing fluoride, it is better to consult a specialist. The dentist will assess the condition of the patient’s teeth, prescribe treatment if necessary, and give recommendations on dental care.