Dentistry Corner

By Deeba Nisar

Dental Caries

October 15, 2004

Dental caries is a problem which about 60% of the people visiting dentists complain of so it is very essential for all of us to know the symptoms, causes, mechanism and prevention of dental caries.

Symptoms - Tooth ache on eating food; Tooth ache on drinking hot or cold; Tooth ache on eating something sweet which continues or stops after eating

Causes - Carbohydrates which are mostly present in sugar and sweets; Sweets of adhesive nature are more cariogenic as they stick to the tooth surface and do not get cleaned readily; Certain micro organisms also cause caries.

Mechanism - The formation of dental caries includes three major components: Host (tooth surface); Micro organisms; Substrate (carbohydrates e.g. sweets).

The caries are formed when the micro organisms( present in mouth due to improper oral hygiene) act on the substrate e.g. sweets which are adhered to the tooth surface so if our teeth remain unclean for a long time the caries formation takes place

Prevention - Use a tooth brush for cleaning teeth after every meal; Use of dental floss to remove impacted food debris in between the teeth; Dental check up every six months; Visit a dentist as soon as u notice any of the symptoms mentioned above.

Hope these tips help you preserve a "Healthy smile."