Exercising is good for both mental and physical state of every individual. Naturally, being careful while performing is a necessary approach if you wish to prevent injuries from happening.

Everything starts with a thorough warming up routine, regardless of the sport you are into, as well as following certain procedures while actually performing.

When damaging your teeth is in question, team and contact sports participants are the primary risk group. Well, not entirely.

There are much greater risks and expectancy of teeth damage involved in matters outside the performance itself that it is in actual dental injuries resulting from physical contact.

Here is what this is all about.

Olympic Survey

A sample of 378 professional athletes that participated in Summer Olympics held in London in 2012 was chosen to participate in a survey conducted by The University of London which was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

The results were shocking. Nearly 75 percent of athletes suffered from teeth decay, almost 15 percent from gum disease and nearly 85 percent from enamel erosion. This obviously is not related to tooth injury. So, what lies behind these problematic figures?

Diet

In order to have sufficient energy for practice and competitions and to regain it fast after them, athletes often opt for intense dietary regime, which often includes high-carb and high-protein ingredients, as well as increased quantities of sugared drinks or artificial sweeteners, including high energy chocolate bars and boosters.

We all know how sugar effect the state of our teeth and this is especially severe since athletes have training sessions that last for hours, not to mention competitions.

This practically means that the increased content of sugar will remain on their teeth usually until the next opportunity to wash their teeth, which is usually before bedtime.

Dehydration

While we exercise we slowly dehydrate and this is especially noticeable in our mouth. The content of spit decreases significantly and the chemical composition of saliva drastically changes.

It becomes more alkaline, meaning that its pH level increases, which presents an increased risk for tartar plaques and other teeth problems.

Therefore, the solution is in taking extra liquids during exercising. However, what we drink and how we drink it during exercising highly influences the health of our teeth.

Drinking Habits

This is another important cause of tooth decay, especially enamel erosion. Athletes tend to sip their drinks throughout the entire training period.

By doing this, they constantly add new quantities of sugar or artificial sweeteners to their teeth, prolonging the period of exposure and increasingly damaging them.

This sipping manner of intake leaves additional damage to teeth enamel, significantly increasing the erosion and making the teeth thinner and thinner along the way.

Simple switching to water or hypotonic drinks would significantly reduce these problems. If you already suffer from severe dental problems, orthodontists from Sydney advise cosmetic dentistry as a solution and increased care in further prevention.

About prevention, to avoid additional teeth health issues, athletes, especially professional ones need to take precautions about what they eat and what they drink, as well as hot they do it, with increased attention to dental hygiene. Water, less sugar, no sipping and regular brushing, and flossing after exercise is the key to dental health.