Those bad habits you've developed affect so many different parts of your life. Some of them will affect your teeth, and they could lead to serious problems when you are older and your teeth start weakening. Here are the most common bad habits that cause problems for your teeth and some suggestions to help avoid them.
1. Grinding Your Teeth
Whether you do it in your sleep or just subconsciously when you're awake, grinding your teeth is a bad habit you want to give up right now. It wears the top of your teeth down, removing the enamel and making your teeth more susceptible to tooth decay. This is a common symptom of anxiety, so you will need to find a way to get the anxiety and stress out of your life. The first stage in preventing the effects of teeth grinding could be getting a mouth guard to offer some extra protection.
2. Crunching Ice and Lollipops
How often have you decided to eat the ice in your drink? You may think it is just a silly little thing to do, but it is actually causing harm to your teeth. The teeth aren't designed to crunch something so hard, and this includes lollipops and hard sweets. You put your teeth under excess stress and could end up cracking them, so try to avoid this habit.
3. Opening Things With Teeth
Whether it is something small like a bag of chips or something more dangerous like a bottle, opening anything with your teeth is going to cause problems. Like crunching, you put your teeth under unnecessary trauma, running the risk of cracks and chips. Use a pair of scissor or invest in a bottle opener instead.
4. Using Toothpicks and Other Sharp Objects
It seems that toothpicks should be used to get food out from between the teeth. The evidence is in the name, right? The problem is you run the risk of damage your gums and tooth enamel. The only thing you should use to get food out from between the teeth is dental floss. This will help to remove plaque at the same time.
It's time to give up the bad habits and instill good ones. Those bad habits are damaging your teeth, whether it is increasing the risk of tooth decay or damaging your teeth completely. Invest in objects to actually open your bottles and get rid of the toothpicks. You may even find your mouth and jaw don't hurt as much on a daily basis.
For more information and advice on how to care for and protect your teeth, talk with professionals, like those at Orthodontic Associates.
