What Are Dental Caries?
Dental caries, commonly referred to as tooth decay or cavities, are the most common form of dental disease we encounter. In addition to being the most common, it’s also the most preventable and treatable.
There are two locations you can develop caries:
- On the top of the teeth in between the hard ridges. These types are known as occlusal caries. You can spot them by looking for dark brown spots along the creases of the nooks and crannies at the top of a tooth.
- On the surfaces in between teeth. These types are known as interproximal caries. Similar to an occlusal, interproximal caries can be visually identified as dark or brown patches along the tooth surface in between two teeth.
According to the CDC, 1 in 5 adults have at least one untreated cavity, and half of children age 6-9 have cavities in their primary or permanent teeth.
Signs and Symptoms of Dental Caries
Common symptoms of dental caries can include:
- Sensitivity
- Toothache
- Visible white spots (an early, sometimes reversible sign!)
- A visible hole where a cavity has formed
Whether your symptoms are early (white spots), or advanced (a large hole in the tooth), it’s important to visit a dentist to assess any stage of dental caries. If left untreated, dental caries can grow deeper into the layers of the tooth and lead to infections and then require invasive treatments like root canals or extractions.
Causes of Dental Caries
Dental caries, or tooth decay, is the progressive corrosion of the layers of a tooth. It occurs when harmful bacteria in the mouth produce corrosive acids while digesting sugary or starchy foods.
The acids, food particles, and bacteria combine to form a biofilm coating on the teeth called plaque. If you have ever felt a fuzzy sensation when you run your tongue over your teeth, then you know what plaque feels like.
Daily brushing and flossing easily get rid of the plaque that forms daily in our mouths. But if you have poor oral hygiene, the plaque will form into a hard-to-remove substance called tartar.
Additionally, the acids in the plaque will start corroding the enamel of our teeth. This is the early stage of tooth decay. If your oral hygiene doesn’t improve the tooth decay will go beyond the enamel layer to the dentin and finally the pulp layer. Eventually, untreated tooth decay may cause tooth loss.
Sugary food and drinks, as well as a habit of snacking between meals, increase the likelihood of tooth decay and cavities. Some people are also at higher risk for developing caries.
For instance, if you suffer from dry mouth your teeth have less saliva protection from plaque acids so you must take extra care to prevent cavities. Recent research has also shown that genetics play a role in who develops dental caries.
How Dental Caries Develop
Tooth decay, or dental caries, is a progressive condition that takes place in stages. The first stage occurs when the hard layer of our teeth (enamel) starts losing minerals after exposure to the acids produced by plaque bacteria. White spots are an early sign as they appear on the teeth when the enamel loses some of its minerals.
If tooth decay continues beyond the enamel, it will damage the inner layer of the tooth called the dentin. Dentin is softer than enamel, so tooth decay progresses very fast once it reaches this layer. The dentin is also connected to the nerves of the tooth, so when decay affects it your teeth become extremely sensitive to hot or cold temperatures.
In case tooth decay remains untreated it will progress to the innermost layer of the tooth called the pulp. The pulp layer contains nerves and blood vessels, and any damage here will lead to swellings, infections, and abscesses. A tooth abscess is a painful pocket of pus that forms at the root of the teeth. It can cause your gums, face, jaw, and neck to swell. Extreme cases of infection and abscess may force your dentist to remove the affected tooth.
One huge risk factor for the formation of cavities is saliva. When you eat, the pH levels of your mouth drops and becomes more acidic. In a healthy mouth, the saliva raises the pH levels back up shortly after eating. If there is a problem—lack of saliva, too much bacteria, not enough time between meals—the mouth can remain acidic too long, dissolving minerals out of the enamel surface. The missing minerals cause weak spots which can progress to cavities if the mineral loss remains unchecked.
Risk Factors for Dental Caries
Some of the common risk factors for dental caries are:
- Diet
- Reduce your regular intake of sugary foods. The less sugar you give the bacteria, the less acid they produce.
- Oral Hygiene
- Brush your teeth twice a day. Brushing in the morning and the evening before bedtime reduces the number of food particles that remain inside the ridge creases on the top of your teeth, giving the bacteria less leftover food to consume.
- Floss at least once per day, preferably before bedtime. Flossing decreases the number of leftover food particles in between teeth, reducing the chance of forming interproximal caries.
- Saliva
- The thing about dry mouth is that, even though everyone experiences it at some point in their lives, it really shouldn’t be ignored. Dry mouth is a major risk factor for cavity development.
- Saliva is the protective substance your body makes to protect tooth health. Not having enough saliva leaves teeth vulnerable and unprotected.
- Professional Dental Care
- Visit your dentist twice annually for a thorough cleaning. Even with the best brushing and flossing habits, there can be dental areas that are hard to reach. Regular dental visits for cleanings ensure those hard-to-reach areas are thoroughly cleaned and allow a dental professional to examine your teeth for specialized recommendations.
Diagnosing Dental Caries
The diagnostic process for dental caries begins with a visual exam, where the dentist checks for discoloration, surface irregularities, and plaque buildup. X-rays, particularly bitewing radiographs, are often used to detect caries between teeth or beneath the surface. Additional specialized tools may also be used to help assess the depth and severity.
Seeing a dental professional regularly is very important for early detection and prevention. Products may be recommended to help reverse some of the early signs of dental caries, and treatment plans can be recommended to deal with current decay before it gets worse.
Treatment Options for Dental Caries
Common treatments for dental caries include:
- Fillings – Used to restore teeth after removing decayed tissue.
- Crowns – Caps placed over severely damaged teeth.
- Root Canals – Performed when decay reaches the tooth’s pulp, involving removal of infected tissue and sealing the root canal.
- Extractions – Necessary when a tooth is too damaged to be saved.
Less invasive options, such as fluoride treatments or dental sealants, are also often recommended to aid in prevention.
Because each individual has such different risk factors, it is vital to visit a dental professional to assess your risk and develop a custom plan for you. Dentists that provide Caries Risk Assessment in their practice are high recommended for this level of personalized care.
Prevention Strategies for Dental Caries
The good news in all of this is there are many steps you can take to prevent dental caries from ever occurring.
Homecare
Brushing and flossing daily are the first steps you can take to prevent cavities. To ensure your oral hygiene practices are effective, use a soft bristle toothbrush and gentle, circular movements to brush every surface of your teeth. It’s recommended that you brush your teeth for two full minutes to ensure all the teeth are cleaned.
For flossing, most dentists recommend the c-shape flossing technique. This method requires the floss to be approximately the length of your forearm. Wrap the two ends of the string around both of your middle fingers, leaving enough string to wrap around a tooth in the shape of a c curve. Leave your thumb and forefingers free to control the floss.
Place the string between two of your teeth and then pull the strings on each side to form the shape of a C. Gently drag the floss up and down to clean one side of your tooth. Once done, pull the strings in the opposite direction to form an opposite C that can clean the next tooth. Repeat this until you have cleaned all your teeth to prevent tartar buildup.
Diet
Eating sugar is definitely a culprit in damaging our teeth, but what are the other issues? You may not realize it’s not only what you eat but how you eat it. You may not be eating a lot of sugar. In fact, you may have a very healthy diet, but you snack all day. If you are eating healthy snacks non-stop, this makes it tricky for your mouth to maintain a high pH balance.
When we nibble on things all day, we are making our oral bio-system work harder. Saliva is designed to raise your oral pH after eating or drinking. As you eat or drink, your oral pH drops, and if you are continually eating and drinking, your saliva will not have enough time to do its job.
Constantly feeding the biofilm allows too much acidic time in the mouth, which can lead to mineral loss, unhealthy microbe overgrowth, and cavities. If you can eat separate meals and minimize snacking, your mouth will have an easier time staying healthy.
Products for Prevention
Dental caries is a pH driven disease, so the products you’re using at home are a big factor in preventing dental caries.
CariFree products all utilize elevated pH+ technology. When you’re regularly incorporating a rinse or a toothbrush that has a pH of 8-10, you’ll be able to promote a healthy biofilm and reduce your risk for future decay. Of additional importance is the use of nano-hydroxyapatite, nanoXIM by FLUIDINOVA, in our tooth gels.
Using nano-hydroxyapatite, alongside fluoride (or even without) is hugely beneficial for remineralization and cavity prevention. If you’re not utilizing these components in your homecare routine, now is a great time to start!
