Keep Teeth Healthy with These Vitamins and Minerals

Most of us know vitamins and minerals are important parts of keeping our bodies healthy. But have you ever thought about which vitamins and minerals help keep teeth healthy? If not, now is a good time to start thinking about it! Eating the right foods can help you prevent gum disease, tooth loss, and painful inflammation. Keep reading below to see which vitamins and minerals will help keep your mouth and teeth shiny and smiling. 

Keep Teeth Healthy with Calcium

With all the “Got Milk?” commercials in the past couple of decades, many people know the importance of calcium for bone health and growth. But calcium is also an important nutrient for teeth health. It helps harden your tooth enamel and your jawbone, making it more difficult for you to get cavities or experience jaw pain. 

If you don’t like milk, don’t worry—calcium is found in many different types of food! Yogurt and cheese are great sources of this important mineral, as are leafy, green vegetables like kale, mustard greens, broccoli, and collard greens. Like fish? Great—because canned salmon and sardines are also full of calcium. 

Vitamin A

Strangely enough, vitamin A is excellent for saliva production. Saliva helps reduce the amount of bacteria in your mouth and breaks down the food you eat, making it easier to digest. Vitamin A also helps keep teeth healthy by strengthening tooth enamel. If you’re thinking Vitamin A, think orange: sweet potatoes, carrots, bell peppers all contain large amounts of Vitamin A. Egg yolks and fish are also good sources of this important vitamin. 

Vitamin D

Vitamin D works in conjunction with calcium—it helps absorb, carry, and deposit calcium to your teeth and bones. Without it, you can develop gingivitis, and your teeth can be more vulnerable to cavities. While much of humans’ Vitamin D comes from the sun, you can have a Vitamin D deficiency if you don’t spend much time outside, like in the winter months. You can take a vitamin D supplement, or you can eat more oily fish, like salmon, to make sure you’re getting the right amount of this nutrient. 

Vitamin C

It’s easy to keep your teeth healthy with vitamin C, an important nutrient that strengthens your gums. This helps prevent your teeth from loosening, as is sometimes seen in patients with a severe vitamin C deficiency. Vitamin C is found in citrus fruits, like oranges and grapefruits, as well as kale, sweet potatoes, strawberries, raspberries, and broccoli. 

Phosphorus

Not as widely thought about as the vitamins and minerals listed above, phosphorus is a heavy hitter in teeth health. As with vitamin D, phosphorus helps the body absorb calcium, strengthening bones and teeth. It also helps make the enamel on teeth stronger, preventing cavities. Phosphorus is found mainly in foods with a lot of protein, like meat, fish, chicken, and eggs.

Now that you are ready to start eating more vitamins and minerals to keep your teeth healthy, you can also take the next step toward better oral health by scheduling a free consultation with Milnor Orthodontics. Contact us today to learn more about the best orthodontic options for your smile!