Gum is to no surprise a very popular product in the United States. But when it has sugar and stays in your mouth for long periods of times, it can prove harmful for your teeth. Yet the tables turn when we talk about sugar free gum. Not only is it healthy, it actually helps our mouth stay in a healthier shape over time.
We shall review some of the important assets that sugar free gum brings to our lives. Hopefully this will make you reconsider next time you see gums at the shop’s rack!
Boosting saliva production
Chewing on some gum nonchalantly actually helps you boost your saliva production. This proves especially useful for those people who suffer from dry mouth, also called xerostomia.
Having a good saliva production is of utmost importance, for it prevents a lot of problems inside our mouths. A lack of it usually ends with a poor mouth environment, where germs and bacteria strive. Otherwise, the benefits of having a good saliva production are many:
- Keeps the mouth moist as it should be. Having a dry mouth can be uncomfortable and even painful.
- Saliva plays a big role on chewing, tasting and swallowing food.
- Helps in keeping away bad breath.
- There are substances in saliva that helps dealing with germs, especially with those that cause plaque.
- Aids in the remineralization process of the teeth through its natural components. This greatly helps against gum disease and tooth decay, which we will talk about later.
Tooth decay
Usually, chewing on gum would be bad for your teeth as the sugar would have a prolonged contact in your mouth. But this is not the case for sugarless gum, where it helps keeping the mouth healthy! By chewing on sugarless gum, you are protecting your teeth by helping clean your teeth from food particles and bacteria.
As you know, brushing immediately after eating can help in wearing down the tooth enamel. Los Algodones dentist recommend waiting at least 20 minutes in this scenario before you start brushing.
So a healthy way to deal with this is by chewing gum during that period of time. As we mentioned before, it will help picking up food particles as well as also deal with plaque in the process. That’s right, as plaque is a soft and sticky film, the gum has no trouble removing it.
Help strengthening the enamel
There are many more ways to strengthen the tooth enamel than just dental treatments and fluoride.
One of these ways is through some specific gums, which have a component called casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate. This substances, is said to help harden and remineralize the enamel.
What makes the gum sugarless?
When we heard the word ‘sugarless’, we usually get the picture it will not be sweet at all. But it just actually means that sugar is not present in the product. These chewing gums usually have a component called xylitol. Xylitol is a natural sweetener that replaces sugar on these products, so there is nothing to worry about.
By having this sugar replacement, the bacteria in our mouth is unable to feed off it and start producing plaque and acids. There are even a good array of studies that say that the use of this component helps diminishing the number of bacteria that strive.
So next time you are about to buy some gum at your preferred shop, think about all the benefits you are missing out! Not only is the gum still sweet, you are helping your teeth be healthier than ever by cleansing them and cutting back on the sugar.