Dr Tony answers your emailed oral health questions

Here are the latest posts to our resident Pronamel dental care expert, Dr Tony.

Make sure you check back regularly to get the inside line from Dr Tony on more of your oral health questions.

Question

Does zoom whitening make teeth weaker or more porous? Thank you. Mon

Answer

Hi Mon, Zoom tooth whitening does not make your tooth enamel weaker or more porous. It is quite safe to use and has been used for whitening teeth for many years in many countries worldwide with no adverse effects. Zoom tooth whitening does dry your tooth enamel slightly during the procedure but this is reversed quickly after the procedure by your saliva rewetting the tooth enamel. As an extra precaution to help strengthen your tooth enamel after Zoom tooth whitening you could use a gentle toothpaste with optimum fluoride availability such as Pronamel. Regards, Dr Tony

Dr Tony answers your emailed oral health questions

Here are the latest posts to our resident Pronamel dental care expert, Dr Tony.

Make sure you check back regularly to get the inside line from Dr Tony on more of your oral health questions.

Question

Hi Dr Tony, I brush my teeth twice a day, exercise regularly and snack before high-intensity workouts - a classic case prone to "Acid wear" you may say. However, I was wondering if any foods could work in tandem with Sensodyne to help prevent/reverse this recent condition? Regards, Lisa

Answer

Hi Lisa, Thanks for your question. The most important thing to watch when you are exercising is your level of hydration. If you become dehydrated you start to reduce your production of saliva, which is very important in the protection of your tooth enamel from acid wear. Saliva neutralises and washes away any acids in your mouth, for example, from sports drinks, and re-mineralises tooth enamel. Lisa, drink lots of water during and after exercise and always after consuming sports drinks and fruit juices.

Another way to protect your tooth enamel from acid wear is to chew sugar free gum. This stimulates the production of saliva to strengthen and protect your tooth enamel.

Specific foods to help prevention of acid wear are those high in calcium, mostly dairy products, such as cheese, milk and yoghurt. Lisa, it is important to reduce the frequency of consumption of acid foods and drinks during and after exercise.

Also, may I suggest that Pronamel should be your toothpaste of choice as it is formulated more specifically to aid in the prevention of acid wear than Sensodyne. Regards, Dr Tony

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Plus, Dr Tony answers your emailed oral health questions.