Health Of Today

Essential Vitamins for Healthy Teeth
Healthy teeth and gums are necessary for proper food intake ingestion. It is vital to know which vitamins are ideal to promote a healthy mouth. If one is deficient in vitamin intake, they will have many problems with their teeth. Teeth and gums go through many changes as we age and can quickly detoriate without us being aware. Preventing disease and easing the effects of aging can be achieved by taking in the proper vitamins and minerals along with caring properly for those teeth and gums.

THE VITAMINS
Remember, each vitamin has a purpose to fulfill within the body. If essential quanities of a vitamin is not found in the body then a deficiency disease may surface. At this point the body will need help with more than where the vitamin is deficient.

Healthy teeth and gums require a balanced diet and vitamin intake, however, here are several specific vitamins that are vital to healthy teeth and gums: Vitamins A, C and D.

Vitamins A and D are fat-soluble vitamins. This means they are stored in the liver and are not easily excreted. Ingesting toxic levels of these vitamins is possible so do not add these as additional supplements to your daily vitamin intake without consulting your doctor.

Vitamin A has much to do with the healthy formation of teeth and skin. It also aids in the formation and maintenance of mucous membranes, soft tissue & helps with good vision. Vitamin A has a precursor called beta-carotene that has antioxidant properties. Antioxidants aid the body in take care of chemicals called free radicals. Free radicals pretty much cause the body to decay. Obviously, that’s not ideal. Eating foods rich in beta-carotene will help you maintain strong, shiny and healthy teeth.

Vitamin D is actually created in the body after exposure to sunshine. It takes only approximately 15 min of exposure about three times a week to get enough sunshine to produce the necessary amount of Vitamin D that your body needs. Vitamin D stimulates calcium absorption and that’s what necessary to develop and maintain healthy teeth and bones. Children need to get adequate Vitamin D because it helps them develope strong bones and teeth as they grow up. Children need higher levels of Viatmin D intake than adults do.

Vitamin C is also a water-soluble vitamin. It needs to be ingested daily. Water-soluble vitamins, like Vitamins A, C & D are washed out of the body once the body has what it needs. Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, stimulates healthy teeth and gums, assists the absorption of iron and also maintains healthy connective tissue. If you fall causing your skin to cut, Vitamin C aids in the healing of those wounds. It also is an very strong antioxidant.

MINERALS

Everyone needs adequate calcium no mater what age they are. This mineral is directly related to the building of bones and teeth. If you’re wondering what bones have to do with your teeth - here’s the connection. Your “jawbone” is the foundation your teeth. If your jawbone is not healthy, your entire mouth suffers.

In conjunction with calcium you need adequate levels of phosphorus. These two minerals work hand-in-hand to make your bones and teeth stronger. In the days to come, we will talk further about phosphorus, in addition to fluoride, magnesium and other necessary minerals to strong teeth.

WHAT FOODS TO AVOID

From the diagrams above, it’s clear what foods that you should intake on a regular basis. But what should we avoid?

You want to stay away high calorie, salt and sugar foods. Also, the wrong kinds of fat such as those nasty fast foods or processed and pre-packaged foods. As a rule, fast food meals, and pre-package items are never healthy. That’s not to say that you should never eat out - there are healthy ways to eat out and pick out healthy food.  It’s a fact that most meals that fall into this category are deficient in essential nutrients and can pack on the pounds quickly.  For this reason, I never understood eating junk foods. What’s appealing about eating a giant bag of food that is of little or no nutritional value?  Excessive salt and sugar interfere with the body’s metabolism by altering insulin processes and blood pressure among other destructive behaviors.  Be sure to keep an eye out for tooth decay and gum disease, especially if you fill your diet with fast foods or processed foods. The sugars included in these foods can cause tooth decay to increase quickly. Not good!

Enclosing - keep an eye out on what you eat and take in essential amounts of your key vitamins to ensure bright, vibrant, long lasting healthy teeth.