Sugar – Sarah Jebreil D.D.S.

This weekend we celebrated my mom’s birthday. We usually go to the Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach every year for her birthday and enjoy the sun while perusing local crafts with a cold glass of wine. This year was very different because mother nature decided to rain on our tradition, which was fantastic because we got to try something new! We walked through the ever so hip and quaint SOCO and stopped for some oysters at Shuck. Along with the delicious and slippery omega 3s (oysters) I sampled, I washed them down with a lovely sparkling glass of Brut champagne.

Champagne is my guilty pleasure because I love the bubbles and just the touch of sweetness that a glass of brut has. Unfortunately that “touch” of sweetness is over 2.5 grams of sugar per tiny flute! Sugar is not only bad for the teeth, but it also creates a more acidic environment in the body. An acidic environment can harbor fungal growth and inflammation and is toxic to your liver and kidneys, not to mention contributing to diabetes. There is so much bad press about sugar lately and rightly so, it is very important to limit your sugar intake not only for your teeth but also for your overall health.

Do you still want something sweet? Xylitol is a plant-based sugar that has been shown to reduce acidity in the mouth and help fight tooth decay. Simply adding xylitol to water 2g 2x/day has been shown to help fight tooth decay by reducing mouth acidity. The next time you’re craving something sweet, try trading a TicTac for one Xylamines!

xxoo

Sarah Jebreil, DDS

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