Imagine a mouth with rotten teeth and the smell that comes from them, it is not difficult to guess how repulsive and unpleasant a person with such a problem looks. Bad teeth greatly spoil the impression of a person’s appearance, prevent him from communicating normally with other people, and disrupt his psychological state.
However, this problem is not only aesthetic. Dentists warn that rotten teeth cause arthrosis, polyarthritis, and disrupt the condition of the skeletal system. The products of decay and the microbes that provoke them are carried throughout the body with saliva and blood. A person begins to have problems with organs that, at first glance, have nothing to do with teeth. The infection gradually affects the bone tissue and can reach the brain.
What happens if you ignore the body’s signals, drown out the pain with pills, mask the smell with air fresheners? It may be possible to hide the negative symptoms for a while. However, as they accumulate, they will lead to the appearance of other and not only dental problems.
Causes of tooth decay. How to stop him?
To provide adequate treatment, the doctor must first determine the cause of the disease. Otherwise, the measures may turn out to be useless, the process will continue to develop. The causes of tooth decay are external and internal factors. Despite the fact that enamel is considered one of the most durable materials in the body, under unfavorable conditions it quickly deteriorates. As a result, microbes gain unhindered access to the inner, less protected part of the tooth.
To cope with this problem at the initial stage, one visit to the dentist is usually enough. He clears the cavity of affected tissue and closes it with a filling. However, simple neglect of their health and fear of the dental office make people postpone the visit. The result is deterioration of the teeth and their loss.
What causes teeth to deteriorate in adults and why they quickly decay: reasons for a ruined smile
Genetic predisposition
If you are looking for reasons why a person has bad teeth, the answer may lie in their parents.
We are talking about dental heredity, which almost always manifests itself in children both in early and adulthood. Genes determine not only the presence of a particular disease, but also predisposition to it. “Inheritance” in this case determines the following factors: the shape of the jaw system, structure, metabolism (this, in turn, directly affects the development of caries). The research results indicate that if both mom and dad had carious lesions on the upper dentition, the child will have a weaker dentition. The second conclusion is this: if the mother’s front or back teeth have deteriorated, then in 91% of cases the child will have dental problems.
Lifestyle and micronutrient deficiencies
Activities as a whole directly affect the state of the entire organism. Many professional athletes, hockey players, and boxers experience private injuries to the oral cavity, which leads to damage and defects. As a result, the teeth become loose and their position is disrupted.
Hypovitaminosis, a lack of micro-macroelements and vitamins, leads to such negative consequences as bleeding gums. To replenish the required amount of substances, dentists at Dentika recommend regularly taking synthetic drugs that cover the daily requirement. The doctor will write out the prescription at your appointment after a detailed examination.
Malocclusion
This problem occurs in most adults, but people with the most severe anomalies seek qualified treatment. This situation is extremely incorrect, since subsequent pathology leads to:
- Not equal distribution of load on chewing units during the chewing process. Some areas experience double pressure, while others are not fully involved. As a result, dental tissue deteriorates, which explains the poor condition of the front and back teeth.
- Chewing activity is reduced, since not all areas are involved. High-quality chewing dictates the need to close the jaws. But with an incorrect bite, pain and discomfort occurs. As a result, soft tissues and jaw bones are damaged.
Also one of the consequences is periodontitis. In other cases, bruxism develops (uncontrollable grinding, squeaking).
Bad habits
First of all, this is smoking and frequent drinking of alcohol. They contain large amounts of nicotine and alcohol, which negatively affects the composition of saliva (its acidity increases). As a result, the enamel is destroyed, and micropores and cracks form in the dentin.
Do not underestimate chewing laziness, which implies a reluctance to eat solid foods. Refusal of food that requires careful long-term chewing leads to disruption of the self-cleaning processes of the oral cavity. The result is periodontal damage and the development of caries.
The opposite is the habit of cracking nuts with your teeth, opening jars, and frequent use of toothpicks. These and other mechanical damage lead to the destruction of the row.
Abrasion of the enamel layer
This is a natural process, one of the companions of physiological aging. Enamel covers the crown of the tooth and is the hardest tissue in the body. Its main function is protection against chemical, physical and biological damage. If you are wondering why your teeth are deteriorating and what to do, most likely your enamel has already begun to be damaged.
A distinctive feature of tissue is that it does not have living cells. That is, if the enamel layer is worn off, it will not be restored. The first signals are detected after 40-45 years: an increase in sensitivity, an increase in the incidence of caries, a deterioration in the color of rows.
Thinning of the mucous membrane
The older a person is, the less elastic, smooth and thick this tissue is. As a result, it does not cope with protection from negative factors to the same extent. It follows from this that older people ask why their teeth suddenly began to deteriorate. In particular, with age, infectious diseases develop more often, scratches and small wounds appear, which now heal much longer and more difficult than in youth. The most common pathology caused by problems with the mucous membrane is candidiasis.
When is a person to blame for having bad teeth?
Experts identify a number of causes of tooth decay, for which the patient himself is to blame. Knowing them, you can take timely measures to prevent the development of the disease. These reasons include:
- Smoking. Components released from tobacco disrupt metabolic processes in dental tissues. Due to this, their ability to resist adverse effects is sharply reduced.
- Alcohol, drugs. They negatively affect the functioning of the entire body, impair its protective functions and ability to recover.
- Poor nutrition. Lack of minerals and vitamins in food leads to weakening of the enamel. An excess of sweets, sour fruits, and berries contributes to the destruction of enamel.
- Unhealthy Lifestyle. Lack of physical activity, constant presence in dusty rooms, abuse of fatty, fried foods reduces the body's protective functions.
In addition, lack of or improper oral hygiene contributes to the formation of plaque. It becomes a source of food for microorganisms that gradually destroy teeth.
Negative factors beyond the patient's control
If a person does not smoke, engages in debate, and watches his diet, why do his teeth begin to rot? There may be several reasons for this:
- Bad ecology. Polluted air, poor quality water, an excess of some and a lack of other important components. Fluoride deficiency is often cited as the cause of dental problems.
- Heredity. If the parents had bad teeth or the mother did not visit the dentist during pregnancy, children often experience similar problems.
- Physiological features. Hormonal imbalance in adolescents during the growth period, in pregnant and lactating mothers.
Tooth decay is often a consequence of other diseases. Problems with periodontal tissues - gingivitis, periodontitis, periodontal disease - lead to the development of caries and cause tooth loss. If a purulent cyst forms near the root, the infection quickly spreads to the tooth. Often the deterioration of teeth is caused by diseases of the stomach, intestines, and thyroid gland.
Causes
Caries in the age category up to 5-10 years develops for various reasons:
- Improper hygiene – pathogenic bacteria accumulate in the oral cavity, which multiply and lead to damage to the enamel.
- A large amount of sweets in the diet – sugar remains on the teeth and promotes the growth of bacteria.
- Early use of antibiotics - some medications change the color of the enamel.
- Poor absorption of calcium by the body.
- Heredity.
- Dysbacteriosis.
- Chronic diseases.
- Insufficiently formed enamel.
- Improper diet - deficiency of vitamins, minerals, fats leads to darkening of teeth due to specific plaque.
Characteristic symptoms and stages of disease development
Dental problems manifest themselves in different ways. It depends on the degree of damage, the sensitivity of the body, and the number of problem areas. Tooth decay does not occur in just one day.
Dentists distinguish several characteristic stages, which are characterized by certain symptoms:
- Unpleasant smell. At first it is not too noticeable. Gradually, even during a conversation, the interlocutor feels a putrid “aroma”. Its source is pathogenic bacteria. They inhabit plaque that forms at the point of contact between the gum and tooth.
- Stains on the enamel. This is the next stage of the disease, when the damage spreads deeper and damages the enamel.
- Black areas. If they are located on the root, it is very difficult to notice them. To clarify the extent of the damage, an x-ray is taken.
- Formation of the cavity. A cavity forms in place of the black spot. Through it, food debris gets to the inside of the tooth. The tooth actively “signals” about the problem with painful sensations, reaction to hot and cold.
- Pulpitis develops. By not consulting a doctor in time, the patient allows inflammation to reach the pulp. Soft tissues containing blood vessels and nerves undergo rotting. It is accompanied by sharp, unbearable pain.
The decay process ends in different ways. If it starts from the top of the tooth, it gradually spreads to the root. After the nerve dies, the pain intensity decreases. If decay affects the root first, the tooth may fall out or have to be removed.
Why do teeth rot at the gums?
Caries near the gums and on visible parts of the tooth are no different.
The reasons for its occurrence are the same, but near the gums it is more difficult to identify and treat the disease. Therefore, patients usually consult a doctor at the stage of progressive pulpitis. Timely detection helps prevent the development of caries in the gingival region. To do this, you need to periodically visit the dentist, who will correctly assess the condition of the enamel and detect the development of caries in time. Experts call gum disease a common cause of its occurrence. Food debris that accumulates in the gum pocket promotes the development of bacteria. In addition, the disease can be caused by an incorrectly installed crown, poor hygiene, or changes in the composition of saliva.
Treatment of caries of anterior teeth
The main method of treating caries in the front teeth is filling. When it comes to incisors, in the language of dentists this is called very beautifully - artistic restoration. It is better not to save on the cost of the filling. High-quality material will last longer and will not spoil your smile. The front teeth are always visible, so the dentist has to select the color and degree of transparency of the filling with pinpoint precision; it must match the shade of the tooth as closely as possible. Reflective composite materials do not spoil the aesthetic appearance. Over time, light fillings do not darken or wear off.
What to do with a tooth that has rotted to the root?
If the root has rotted and treatment measures do not produce results, the tooth has to be removed. Loss of the upper part leads to the development of pathologies:
- the appearance of a cyst at the root apex;
- fracture or dislocation of the root;
- injury to the gums from a splinter;
- periodontal diseases.
A rotten root becomes a source of infection that spreads to nearby tissues.
In any case, the doctor chooses the treatment. If there is a high probability of negative consequences, removal will be carried out. To avoid this, it is recommended not to skip periodic dental checkups.
A child’s teeth are rotting: to treat or not to treat?
Rotten teeth are in most cases a problem for adults. However, this process can affect baby teeth. Moreover, the path from the appearance of a small spot to a severe stage passes very quickly. The reasons for this phenomenon are the same as in adults. At the same time, we can identify characteristic factors that have a negative impact on children’s teeth:
- excessive love for sweets;
- insufficient oral hygiene;
- mother's dental problems during pregnancy.
It is impossible to stop rotting at home. You must contact your dentist immediately.
Reasons why teeth may crumble
The answer to the question of why teeth crumble in an adult or child can be not only in the field of dentistry, but also much deeper, and everything is reflected in the condition of the dentition.
Causes:
- poor
oral hygiene. And no matter how they say that everyone always talks about the importance of the procedure, it is so. An acidic environment has a destructive effect on enamel, making it fragile and vulnerable. Increased acidity is affected by plaque on the teeth, which is where bacteria and their waste products—destructive acid—accumulate; - untreated caries
and other diseases, when there is a lot of carious tissue and the walls of the tooth become thinner. As a result, the tooth began to crumble; - mechanical causes
: trauma, super-hard food - nuts, chewing candy, etc., bad habits - chewing pencils, objects, opening a bottle with your teeth. As a result, the tooth cracked and broke; - changes in
food temperature. Very hot suddenly gives way to cold. The enamel does not withstand, cracks appear; - lack of vitamins
and minerals: calcium, vitamin D (which promotes the absorption of calcium), fluorine, phosphorus; - metabolic disease
. It is worth visiting an endocrinologist; - hormonal imbalance
. These are not only diseases associated with hormonal levels and fluctuations, but also special periods in a person’s life - adolescence and old age, menopause, pregnancy; - heredity
. Genetic predisposition to weak enamel; - stress
; - malocclusion
- uneven load on the lower and upper teeth; - Bruxism
is involuntary grinding of teeth during the day or at night.
Video from our expert about how and why teeth decay:
Teeth quickly decay due to chronic diseases, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and endocrine glands. And crumbling teeth is a signal that needs to be responded to urgently.
Caries on baby teeth
As a result of long-term research, scientists were able to identify the main cause of caries in baby teeth. It becomes: microorganisms transmitted to the child from the mother. Streptococcus gets to the baby through a kiss, through a pacifier licked by the mother, or shared cutlery. Microbes come from other people through these same routes. When teething, babies are especially vulnerable to streptococcus. In addition, lack of oral hygiene, poor diet, and the composition of saliva have a negative impact.
Dentists point out that regular use of baby formulas from a bottle with a high carbohydrate content creates ideal conditions for the development of bacteria. Getting your baby used to a cup and rinsing his mouth after eating helps reduce their negative effects.
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The habits of others affect dental health
This conclusion was reached by Brenda Hilton, an expert on health policy from Boston University (USA). She found (over 200 American women took part in the experiment) that a person’s close environment—family and friends—has a strong influence on a person’s oral health. The thing is that a person shares common habits with them, including an addiction to certain foods, products, drinks, etc.
With these habits, certain dental knowledge or lack thereof is transmitted.
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