How Can Bad Genes Affect the Quality of Your Teeth and Smile?
A significant problem affecting everyone throughout the world is tooth decay. In reality, it is the top chronic disease across the globe. However, maintaining excellent oral health is insufficient when caring for your teeth. Researchers confirm your oral health depends on dental hygiene practices besides your genes.
Many people never brush their teeth, consume plenty of sugary foods but have teeth appearing fine. Estimates show that genes account for approximately 60 percent of the risk of dental problems. The research is still in its infancy, but scientists have pointed out five areas where your genes play an essential role in your oral health. This article details the five regions where genes can affect the quality of your teeth and smile to consider getting a smile makeover near you from Seascape Cosmetic and Implant Dentistry.
What Are the Five Areas Where Genes Can Affect Your Teeth and Smile?
Preference for Sugary Foods
Everyone blames children for their love of sugary foods. However, the affinity for sugary foods extends across individuals. If you have a solid association with sugary foods, you will likely be at risk of developing dental problems.
Your Tooth Enamel
The role of enamel is apparent. Some people have stronger tooth enamel than the rest. If you have too soft enamel, the outer surface makes it comfortable for the bacteria in your mouth to penetrate through the surface and cause cavities. Genes play an essential role in the toughness of the enamel and significantly impact tooth decay.
Sense of Taste
Some people find cilantro as an excellent topping for themselves. However, others find cilantro bland as a bar of soap. Studies conducted reveal genes can affect the ability to affect the taste of cilantro. People without the suitable variant of genes found the taste of cilantro bland. Scientists have discovered there is a scale on what various people can taste. Regardless of your preference, your genes measure whether you can taste specific flavors or not. The complicated mechanism involves your tongue and sense of smell. Studies are available to prove people with the ability to taste various flavors have fewer chances of developing tooth decay, although scientists haven’t determined why it is the case.
Saliva Strength
Two essential factors determining the health of your teeth are potassium and calcium. However, merely consuming the right foods does not allow you to acquire these nutrients. You must also have the ability to metabolize them. Your saliva plays an essential role in metabolizing. Some variants have been identified by researchers as making people better at metabolizing the foods they have than others.
Microbial Ecology
A field of study exists dedicated to identifying the microbes in your body. These microbes live in ecological equilibrium and are specific depending on the geographical location and the individual. For instance, the mouth has different communities of microorganisms combined together, making up the microbiome. While the ecological equilibrium is expected, how your immune system responds to the microbiome affects your oral health.
Non-Genetic Factors Affecting Your Teeth’s and Smiles Quality
While researchers cannot deny that your oral health is explicitly affected by 60 percent genetics, you have the other 40 percent, which you can control effectively. The 40 percent depends on what you do and your geographical location. For example, the cosmetic dentist in Huntington Beach mentions behaviors like smoking, brushing, access to dental services, social factors and culture, and too many sugary beverages can impact your oral health and your smile.
While sugar by itself is detrimental to your oral health, having it in excessive quantities is particularly dangerous. Sugary drinks are generally acidic, and the sugar used is refined to ensure it gets into every corner of your mouth. It includes areas where your toothbrush cannot reach to create the perfect recipe for enamel erosion and tooth decay.
Another element that affects the tooth is undoubtedly fluoride. Fluoride found in toothpaste, community water, and professional in-office fluoride treatments from the dentist helps prevent tooth decay among everyone.
If you are a resident of Huntington Beach and have problems with your teeth, you help yourself by visiting the cosmetic dentist in the vicinity. They can assist by assessing you in a free consultation to ensure you remain free from the problem of tooth decay. Therefore do not allow your bad genes to affect your teeth’s and smile’s quality to need expensive treatments from various dental professionals.