Cavities

Cavities

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Image provided by Jonathan A. Ship, DMD.

Cavities are decayed parts of your tooth.

• Bacteria build up on your tooth enamel and make acids that cause holes in the tooth—the holes are called cavities

• Tooth pain happens as cavities get bigger and go through the enamel to the inside of your tooth

• Dentists find cavities by looking at your teeth and taking x-rays

• Treatment includes drilling out decay and filling the hole

• Regularly brushing your teeth, getting dental check-ups, and avoiding sugary foods can help prevent cavities

Tooth

Bacteria build up on your teeth and make acid that causes decay.

Bacteria, saliva (spit), and bits of food form a thin layer called plaque that clings to your teeth. Plaque hardens over time and turns into tartar. Tartar is usually yellow. You sometimes see it at the base of teeth. Bacteria living in plaque and tartar are hard to get rid of.

The bacteria thrive on sugar. That's why sugary foods and drinks can lead to cavities. The amount of sugar you eat is less important than the how often you eat sugar. What matters is the amount of time sugar is in contact with your teeth. Sipping a sugary soft drink over an hour is more damaging than eating a candy bar in 5 minutes, even though the candy bar may contain more sugar. Babies who go to bed with a bottle, even if it contains only milk or formula, are also at risk of cavities. Bedtime bottles should contain only water.

You’re more likely to get cavities if you:

• Have a lot of plaque and tartar in your mouth

• Eat and drink sugary or acidic foods, such as cola sodas or juice

• Have too little fluoride (a mineral that makes your enamel harder) in your teeth

• Don’t have much saliva (spit) in your mouth (a condition called dry mouth)

• Have gums that have shrunk down the bottom of your teeth (receding gums)

A shallow cavity in your enamel doesn't hurt. Cavities that are a little deeper may cause pain when you eat hot, cold, or sweet foods or drinks.

A cavity that gets deep enough to reach the pulp causes pulpitis. Pulpitis causes toothache even when you’re not eating or drinking. If the pulp gets infected, you may develop a pocket of pus called a dental abscess.

Dentists diagnose cavities by:

• Looking at your teeth and probing them with dental tools

• Taking x-rays of your teeth

If your cavity is very small and only on the enamel, the tooth can fix itself if you have enough fluoride.

Dentists treat cavities that are deeper than the enamel by drilling out the decayed part of the tooth and putting in a filling. The filling can be made of:

• Composite resins, which match the color of your teeth

• Glass ionomer, which is tooth-colored and releases fluoride, good for people with a lot of tooth decay

• Gold

You can prevent cavities by:

• Brushing your teeth with toothpaste that contains fluoride (in the morning and evening and after eating sugary foods)

• Flossing your teeth daily

• Getting regular dental care

• Eating healthy foods and cutting back on food and drinks that have a lot of sugar or acid

It's important to get enough fluoride. Fluoride is a mineral that protects your teeth from cavities. Fluoride is added to the public water supply in some areas. If it's not in your water, the dentist may prescribe fluoride supplements for children up to age 8, or apply fluoride treatments to your teeth.

If you still get a lot of cavities, dentists may:

• Put sealants on your teeth (sealants are a hard plastic coating that prevent cavities in teeth with deep crevices)

• Have you use an antibacterial mouth rinse that helps kill cavity-causing bacteria