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What to Do if Teeth Crumble?

What to do if teeth crumble

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This service is provided by doctors:
Dental Therapist
Top-level dentist, orthodontist

This condition is not age-related. Not only for older people but also for younger people and children can experience teeth crumbling. Several factors contribute to the damage and dental restoration. The disease treatment is aimed at eliminating them. Let us take a closer look at the reasons for the decay of permanent and deciduous teeth and the measures to be taken.

Why Do Teeth Crumble?

Why do teeth crumble?

Only a doctor can identify the cause and prescribe appropriate treatment. Therefore, the first action taken by any patient whose teeth are crumbling is to visit a dentist. The main factors influencing the destructive process are:

  • Cavities, malocclusion;
  • Injuries. If the enamel cracks due to a bump or impact on the teeth with a solid object, this type of crumbling will not stop;
  • Medical malpractice often leads to tooth damage. This can happen even during tooth filling if the cavity is cleaned incorrectly;
  • Age-related changes. Older people have more vulnerable enamel initiating the decay processes;
  • Pregnancy. One of the most common reasons. Every second woman carrying a child faces dental problems. In addition, doctors carefully monitor the amount of calcium in a pregnant woman’s body because the skeletal system suffers the most.

Why Does This Happen in Children?

Why do children's teeth crumble

When baby teeth begin to crumble, parents conclude that a child does not have enough calcium. The right decision is to take your child to the dentist because the causes of crumbling can be completely different. Here are the key reasons:

  • Cavities;
  • Malocclusion. This results in incisors or canines abrasion. Over time, they begin to crack and crumble;
  • Metabolic disorder. This phenomenon, as a rule, influences the whole body negatively.
  • Why Do Teeth Crumble
  • Metabolic disorder influences the condition of the oral cavity. This creates favourable conditions for the development of pathogenic microbes that lead to destruction. No wonder so much attention is paid to nutrition. 

What if this Problem Affects Children?

Many parents believe that if a child’s baby teeth crumble, there is no need for special treatment because they will still fall out. In fact, this case requires a visit to the dentist. The doctor will perform the necessary procedures to strengthen the enamel.

It is essential to properly care for the baby’s teeth – to teach a child how to brush their teeth on time to prevent destructive processes in the oral cavity. Treatment begins when the first tooth erupts. Limit your child’s consumption of sugary foods or do not give them such types of food. After eating sweets, children should rinse their mouths with water. As soon as the baby reaches the age of one, it is necessary to wean off the night feedings. Do not replace them with tea, yoghurt or juice.

It would be best to avoid eating and drinking at night. Give children their utensils. Otherwise, bacteria that can cause tooth decay or other diseases enter the baby’s mouth. Ensure adequate intake of vitamins.

It is essential to understand that in winter or after the illness, the child may need particular drugs to prevent the vitamin deficiency. A paediatrician can prescribe such drugs. As a rule, these are multivitamin complexes in the form of gummies, syrup or pills. In addition to good oral health, it is important to wean your child off the habit of sucking fingers, toys, or solid objects.

Preventive measures

Preventive measures

Many diseases can be prevented. Whereas the leading causes of crumbling are malnutrition, injury and weak enamel, the measures are simple. The doctors recommend the following:

  • Healthy diet. Lack of food containing vitamin D and calcium is the first step to the damage of the enamel. Therefore, the diet must include fish products, milk, and nuts. These products are a good source of fluoride and calcium. You can also ask your doctor to prescribe medications that contain vitamin D.
  • Good oral hygiene practices. These include brushing your teeth twice a day after meals. The brushing process lasts at least 3 minutes. Getting rid of bad habits, first of all, smoking.
  • Therapeutic mouthwash. Herbal teas help strengthen the gums and protect the mouth from bacteria.

Regardless of these factors, it would help if you visited a dentist first. The doctor’s task is to stop the process because it can lead to losing the entire tooth. But, often, the treatment does not end there because the human body can thus signal a severe illness.

Teeth Crumbling during Pregnancy

Are pregnancy, tooth loss and other problems such as enamel erosion related? Some women claim that their teeth shift during pregnancy or that they never had oral health problems until they got pregnant. However, if you experience teeth crumbling during pregnancy, there can be many reasons for this.

General symptoms

Every time someone complains of crumbling teeth (during pregnancy or not), some of the first symptoms will include:

  • grinding and clenching habits;
  • temporomandibular joint disorder;
  • enamel erosion;
  • untreated cavities;
  • sleep apnea.

When we see tooth crumbling during pregnancy, there may be other significant factors. This does not always happen due to hormone changes.

It is essential to see a dentist as soon as symptoms appear to prevent tooth loss or the need for canal treatment during pregnancy. Hormonal changes alone are not a risk factor for tooth loss or wiggling during pregnancy. However, if you experience any of these symptoms, it is crucial to eliminate the concurrent conditions before they worsen.

What Causes Dental Problems during Pregnancy?

Why do so many women complain that they never had dental problems until they got pregnant? Although experts say there is no evidence that babies “suck calcium” out of their mother’s teeth during pregnancy or breastfeeding, there are other reasons why dental problems can worsen.

Most mothers-to-be will experience at least some form of morning sickness in early pregnancy. As the delivery date gets closer, other conditions, such as heartburn tend to worsen due to additional pressure on the gastrointestinal tract. Both of these scenarios create a favourable environment for acid erosion of already weakened teeth. This process can significantly accelerate the destruction of areas with already existing cavities, cracks or old fillings.

Moreover, typical diet changes during pregnancy. More frequent snacking means more exposure to plaque and acidic by-products compared to eating three meals a day. If you do not rinse your mouth and do not brush your teeth regularly, all these extra snacks can speed up the process of tooth decay.

This is interesting! What about hormonal changes? Most dental diseases caused by hormones are associated with gingivitis. Fortunately, it usually goes away after giving birth if you brush and floss your teeth regularly.