Many adults are surprised when their cosmetic dentist informs them they have cavities. This isn’t uncommon in adult dentistry. In children, cavities often occur due to bad habits such as juice in a bottle at night or poor brushing habits associated with learning to brush. With adults, the reasons are very different.
Childhood Cavities
Due to the nutritional needs of growing children, milk, juices, and formula are some of the biggest triggers of cavities. The youngest children often fall asleep while drinking, causing these substances to sit on their teeth. Their cavities often appear as a fine line or dull, white area on their soft teeth while other decaying teeth show up as simply having a darker color.
For some children, the dentistry expert will leave these cavities untouched because they will be falling out in a short time to make way for adult teeth. Other teeth that get cavities, such as a molar, will be in their mouths for a longer period and will need to be filled. If the tooth is too far-gone, it will need to be pulled and a spacer placed between the teeth.
Causes Of Adult Cavities
While all cavities are formed when sugar combines with bacteria in the mouth to create an acid, the cavities a cosmetic dentist sees in adults are not caused by falling asleep with milk or juice in their mouth. Instead, dentistry experts see decay caused by one of two reasons. As adults age their gums move away from their teeth. This can also be caused by brushing too hard. Once this happens, the unprotected root is exposed to the bacteria and sugars in your mouth. Because it has no enamel to fight off these harmful substances, root cavities form along the roots of their teeth.
It is also common for a cosmetic dentist to see decay form around an existing filling. This occurs when bacteria and food collects around the edges of the filling because it is never completely flush with the natural tooth. Since it collects here and is hard to remove, it causes decay. This also happens when the filling becomes loose or breaks because there is nothing to protect the vulnerable interior of the tooth.
Treatment Options
In a proactive treatment, dentistry professionals routinely check your fillings to ensure they are still seated firmly in the tooth. The cosmetic dentist will check for decay that appears in adults as black or brown areas on the tooth. Once he or she finds one, x-rays are often done to survey the extent of the decay. From there, it can be left alone to see if it continues to spread or it will be drilled out to remove the decayed material. Then, the tooth will be filled to seal it and prevent further damage.
Whether you live in Miami or Orange County, dentistry experts can treat a cavity before it has gone too far with regular checkups. The cosmetic dentist will have no other choice but to pull and replace it if decay goes for too long. Remember that children aren’t the only ones that get cavities. Unlike children, you won’t have another set of teeth coming in behind them.