揭祕牙齒保健誤區:飯後必刷牙
So you brush your teeth after every meal, choose herbal tea over fizzy drinks, and snack on Fruit not sweets.
想必你一定會在飯後必刷牙，喝花草茶而不喝汽水，吃零食時會用水果來代替甜品。
資料圖:牙齒保健
It might sound like the ideal formula for perfect teeth, but, actually, it’s not. In fact, any one of those habits could increase your risk of dental erosion or decay.
聽上去，這些都是讓你擁有一口完美牙齒的理想方案，可事實並非如此。其實，有這些習慣的人更有可能長蛀牙。
Here, we reveal some of the other surprising things that could ruin your smile:
讓我們來看看這些有可能毀掉你的牙齒和可愛笑容的因素吧。
資料圖:花草茶
HERBAL TEA
花草茶
Fruit-flavoured tea can be three times more damaging than orange juice, a study found. Many fruit teas are acidic and eat away at tooth enamel, with lemon and blackcurrant among the most damaging.
一項研究發現，果味茶對牙齒的損害是橘子汁的三倍。很多果茶都是酸性的，會慢慢侵蝕掉牙表面的釉質，其中要屬檸檬和黑加侖的腐蝕性最強。
REDUCE THE RISK: Stick to black or green tea. Compounds in black tea can attack the bacteria that form plaque and prevent the plaque from sticking to teeth, U.S. researchers found.
如何補救：只喝紅茶和綠茶。美國的研究人員發現，紅茶中的多種化合物可以殺滅導致牙菌斑的細菌，也可以防止牙菌斑粘附在牙齒上。
More recently, a study at the University of Tohoku in Japan found that drinking one or more cups of green tea a day reduces the risk of cavities. It is thought antioxidants, called catechins, in the tea stop bacteria in the mouth from producing acid.
近日，日本東北大學的研究表明每天喝一杯以上的綠茶可以減少蛀牙機率。他們認爲茶葉中含有一種叫兒茶素的抗氧化劑，可以抑制口腔中的細菌產生酸性物質。
資料圖:健康小食品
HEALTHY SNACKS
健康小食品
Even if you’re snacking on healthy fruit, seeds and nuts, it’s eating little and often that can do your teeth harm.
儘管你選擇的可能是健康的水果和堅果，可正是少食多餐的做法損害了你的牙齒健康。
‘A tooth can withstand five acid attacks a day,’ says one researcher. ‘Saliva takes about an hour to neutralise the acid created by a food or drink. So if you have a can of fizzy drink and sip it all day long, then the acid in your mouth will be under constant attack.’
研究人員表示：“牙齒每天能抵抗五次的酸性物質侵蝕。唾液要用一小時的時間才能中和掉由食物和飲料產生的酸性物質。這樣一來，如果你一整天都在小口啜飲一罐飲料，就等於那些酸性物質一直在攻擊你的牙齒。”
REDUCE THE RISK: Stick to three meals a day and avoid snacking. If you must snack, eat it all at once, rather than picking at it, so that the saliva can quickly neutralise the acid generated in the mouth. After food, rinse your mouth out with water or chew sugar-free gum to encourage saliva, which neutralises the acid.
如何補救：一日三餐外少吃零食。如果特別想吃，那麼不要小口小口吃，一次吃完，這樣唾液可以儘快的中和掉口腔中的酸性物質。吃完後漱口或者嚼無糖口香糖促進唾液分泌，以助中和酸性。
資料圖:眼藥水
EYE DROPS
眼藥水
It sounds unlikely, but anti-inflammatory eye drops can contribute to tooth decay. They are one of a number of drugs — including antidepressants, ibuprofen, antihistamines and blood pressure medications — that cause dry mouth, which means they reduce the production of saliva.
這聽上去有些不可思議，但是消炎眼藥水的的確確會引起蛀牙。消炎眼藥水連同抗抑鬱藥、鎮痛消炎藥、抗組胺藥和降血壓藥這些藥品都會讓你覺得口乾，也就是說它們會抑制唾液分泌。
Saliva acts as a barrier, protecting the teeth by neutralising acidic foods such as oranges, and the acid produced by bacteria as they break down foods.
而唾液正像一道保護牙齒的屏障，把橘子等酸性食物以及細菌分解食物產生的酸性物質中和掉。
REDUCE THE RISK: ‘There are gums, lozenges and gels available over the counter specifically for dry mouth that help encourage the production of saliva,’ says Karen. ‘You could also suck sugar-free sweets for the same effect.’
如何補救：凱倫說：“口乾的話，口香糖，含片和牙膠都是無需處方就可以買到的，這些東西都有助唾液分泌。也可以呷吧呷吧無糖的甜食，效果是一樣的。”
資料圖:游泳
游泳
A study of 500 swimmers found 66 per cent of them had damaged teeth as a result of chlorine.
一項由500名游泳愛好者參與的研究發現，其中66%的人牙齒會受到氯的侵害。
‘Chlorine affects the pH of the water and makes it acidic, so swallowing it can lead to tooth erosion,’ says a researcher.
研究人員稱：“氯會改變水的PH值，使之變成酸性，吞嚥了這些水會導致蛀牙。”
‘This can result in yellowing teeth – because the acid strips the enamel and starts to reveal darker-coloured dentine underneath. It is not a common problem, but may be an issue for regular swimmers who spend a long time in the pool each day.’
“此外氯還會導致一口黃牙，因爲酸性物會剝蝕掉釉質，致使後層顏色較深的牙質顯露出來。儘管這不算是普遍問題，但對於那些每天都泡在游泳池的人來說，這個問題不容忽視。”
REDUCE THE RISK: Try to keep your mouth closed while swimming. Don’t brush your teeth straight after your dip because at this time the surface of the teeth could be softened by the acidic chlorine and could be more easily brushed away.
如何補救：游泳時緊閉嘴脣，游完之後不要立即刷牙，因爲這時牙表面可能正好被酸性的氯軟化了，這樣釉質會被輕易地刷掉。
