How Cavities Are Formed

January 30, 2020

There is an ongoing battle inside your mouth between bacteria and sugars on one side and saliva and fluoride on the other.

When you eat or drink something starchy or sugary, the bacteria in your mouth uses those remnants to produce acid. These acids are what begin to eat away at the hard, outer surface of your teeth – your enamel.

When white spots appear where minerals have been lost, this is a red flag that decay has begun. Luckily, tooth decay still has the chance to be stopped and reversed at this point (before things are too far gone) because there are minerals in your saliva, like phosphate and calcium. These are combined with fluoride from your toothpaste and your drinking water. This is what helps your enamel repair itself, as the minerals lost during an “acid attack” are replaced.

This battle between losing minerals and gaining minerals literally goes on all day long.

If the tooth decay goes too far and more minerals are lost, your enamel gets weak and cavities will start to form. When it gets to the point of an actual cavity, a dentist needs to step in and repair this with a tooth filling.

Be sure to get a dental checkup every six months to ensure you don’t have any cavities, yourself. If you do though, no worries! We can fill them for you and get you back in top shape! Call our dental clinic in Surrey BC today: 604-593-8201.

 

 

 

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