What you need to know about sugar and teeth [Video]

Your mouth is full of hundreds of different types of tiny bacteria. Most of these are enormously helpful in breaking down food and generally maintaining a balanced healthy mouth.

However, among these naturally occurring bacteria, there are some less welcome candidates. It’s these critters that feed on the sugars you eat, creating acids that dissolve our tooth enamel. Enamel is the outer layer of the tooth, which protects the deeper layers of tooth, called dentine and the live central part of the tooth called the pulp which contains nerves and blood vessels.

The more often that you eat sugar-refined, processed or as carbohydrates, the more acid that’s produced. If acid is allowed to corrode the tooth enamel, and goes unchecked, it can cause holes in the teeth known as cavities, or tooth decay.

Food particles can easily get caught in the cavities, acting as a breeding ground for more bacteria …