Bad habits—we all have them, but some are worse than others. And when it comes to your teeth, some of your bad habits might actually be ruining your smile. Atlanta cosmetic dentist Ronald E. Goldstein, DDS shared with us his top five smile-hurting habits to break now.
1. According to Dr. Goldstein, clenching or grinding your teeth is the number one offender since it wears down the biting edges of the teeth, causing an older-looking smile. “Nothing can ruin the sexiness of your smile quicker than grinding your teeth cusps, creating unnatural looking wear facets,” adds Dr. Goldstein.
2. Throwing up after eating (bullemia) can have several negative effects on your teeth. “It removes so much enamel that it deforms the tooth structure. It also causes increasing sensitivity even when brushing,” says Dr. Goldstein.
3. Chewing ice might sound harmless, but it can cause microcracks in your teeth, especially the front teeth. “If you have any hidden cracks in the teeth, chewing ice can cause a catastrophic vertical tooth fracture and require the tooth to be extracted,” says Dr. Goldstein.
4. Sucking on lemons or other citrus fruits may taste sweet, but it can wear your tooth enamel, especially on the fronts of your two front teeth.
5. We’ve all been guilty of chewing on something other than food at some point. Not only is it unsanitary, but chewing on pencils, pens, eye glass frames, what have you, can also be very detrimental to your teeth. “This habit can deform the front teeth or even push teeth out of the normal position in the arch. Some people have a habit of holding a pipe or their eye glasses with their teeth and this habit can depress the key tooth or teeth being used for this purpose,” says Dr. Goldstein
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