Fluoride Treatment

How Does Fluoride Help Avoid Cavities?

While teeth are covered with tough tooth enamel, the hardest substance in the human body, the enamel can still become eroded and damaged. Each day, your tooth enamel is exposed to acids. These acids are formed by the bacteria found in plaque or are found naturally in certain acidic foods and beverages.

9 Things to Know About Topical Fluoride Treatment

Most people are aware of fluoride but probably don’t give it much thought. They will use fluoride toothpaste and perhaps a fluoride mouthwash but know little about it until they visit a dental office and are offered a professional fluoride treatment. A professional fluoride treatment is far stronger than any treatment you can purchase over the counter. Therefore, it must be administered by a dental professional. This treatment can provide numerous benefits. Learn more about fluoride and how it could help your dental health.

1. Fluoride Occurs Naturally

Fluoride is a mineral that occurs naturally and can be found in the soil, rocks, certain foods, and water supplies. Not all drinking water will contain fluoride, depending on your location. It is one of the most common elements on earth.

2. Professional Fluoride Treatments are Cost-Effective

A topical fluoride treatment at your local dental office will not cost very much, so treatment is very affordable. If you have dental insurance, it is most likely covered as it is considered a preventive dental care treatment and can help prevent cavities. Having regular fluoride treatments can cost far less than the cost of repairing a cavity in a tooth. Reducing your risk of tooth decay can significantly lower your dental bills over a lifetime. It will also save you time in the dental chair and lower your risk of painful toothache caused by a badly decayed tooth.

3. Fluoride Strengthens Tooth Enamel

Fluoride works by strengthening tooth enamel, helping to promote a process called remineralization. Each day, your teeth are attacked by acids found in the foods you eat or produced by bacteria in your mouth. Every time you eat something, these bacteria use the leftovers for energy, producing acid as a by-product. This causes demineralization, where the acids remove some minerals from your tooth enamel, including calcium and phosphorus, effectively weakening and softening your enamel.

Your mouth remains more acidic for half an hour to an hour afterward, and as acidity levels decrease, remineralization begins. Minerals in your saliva are redeposited back into your tooth enamel, helping to harden it. Fluoride helps to enhance this process, speeding up remineralization.

Tooth decay occurs when the effect of demineralization outweighs remineralization, eventually weakening tooth enamel so that holes or cavities begin to form.

4. Anyone Can Have Fluoride Treatment

The common misconception is that professional fluoride treatments are just for children when the opposite is true. People of all ages can benefit from a professional application of fluoride. Treatment can be especially beneficial for people at higher risk of cavities. These include patients with special needs who may find it trickier to keep their teeth clean.

Certain medications increase the risk of dry mouth or xerostomia, and the drier conditions allow harmful, acid-producing bacteria to thrive. As a result, the risk of cavities is higher. Older patients can lack dexterity and struggle to clean their teeth adequately. While electric toothbrushes and waterpiks can help overcome this problem, professional fluoride treatments are another useful tool.

Fluoride treatments can help people with tooth sensitivity, which can often occur if their tooth enamel is thinner. This allows sensations of hot, cold, sweet, and sour foods and beverages to penetrate teeth more easily. Fluoride rehardens enamel, so these sensations are less able to penetrate teeth, reducing tooth sensitivity.

5. Fluoride Can Reverse Early Signs of Enamel Erosion

Initially, enamel erosion begins as a soft spot in the enamel called a lesion. When you visit your dentist for regular checkups, they carefully test each tooth for signs of these soft spots. Sometimes, they are visible as white, almost chalky areas, but when present, they can sometimes be reversed with professional fluoride applications. When combined with good oral care at home, this can be sufficient to prevent a cavity from forming.

6. Professional Fluoride Applications are Safe

There has been extensive research into using topical fluoride applications to protect dental health, and these studies have shown treatment is extremely safe. Although professional strength fluoride products are strong, your dentist only uses them occasionally, and they are always given under strict supervision. You can have professional fluoride treatments as often as every three months if required.

Some opponents of fluoride claim it is toxic, which would be true if you ingest a large amount of a fluoridated product. For this reason, it is important to keep any prescription-strength fluoride products, such as toothpaste or mouthwash, out of the reach of children. If they ingest an entire tube of toothpaste, they may become ill, but the risk of any unwanted side effects from a professional fluoride treatment is extremely low.

7. Professional Fluoride Applications Will Not Stain Teeth

Dental fluorosis can occur when developing teeth are exposed to too much fluoride. This can happen during pregnancy when the mother drinks water containing an excess of fluoride from an unregulated source, such as well water. This cannot happen if you drink from public water supplies, as the fluoride content is extremely carefully monitored. If dental fluorosis occurs, the baby’s teeth may have white flecks or brown or black stains when they come through. Although unsightly, dental fluorosis is not harmful. A professional fluoride application cannot cause this problem, as dental fluorosis only occurs while teeth are developing. It cannot occur after teeth are formed.

8. Professional Fluoride Treatments Are Painless

A professional fluoride treatment is probably one of the fastest and most non-invasive procedures available in a dental office. Fluoride can be applied to your teeth in several ways. One method is to paint fluoride varnish onto the teeth using a small brush. Other ways include using a tray filled with fluoride foam or gel that you wear for one or two minutes. Alternatively, you may be given professional-strength mouthwash to swish around your mouth for one minute before spitting it out.

9. There Is No Downtime after a Professional Fluoride Application

After having a professional fluoride application, you can return to everyday activities immediately. You may be advised to avoid eating or drinking anything for half an hour afterward, but you can eat and drink normally after this. If you have fluoride varnish, it will stick to your teeth for several hours after your appointment, and you should wait until bedtime before brushing your teeth to remove it. This gives the varnish plenty of time to be absorbed topically into your tooth enamel.

Are you interested in a professional fluoride treatment for yourself or your child, or do you think this procedure might help your dental health? Ask your dentist during your next checkup and hygiene appointment if you would benefit from fluoride treatment to help protect your smile.