Soft drinks, including regular and diet fizzy drinks, juices, fruit drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks, can weaken tooth enamel. This is especially the case if your son, daughter or yourself are having treatment. The fixed appliances on the front part of the tooth can hinder optimal tooth brushing due to the many tiny components that they consist of. It is recommended that you avoid soft drinks during your orthodontic treatment so no untoward effects happen on the teeth. This is usually marks on the teeth which are difficult to remove. Even your regular dentist will have difficulty removing them and most times they are not possible to remove. This is because the outer surface of the tooth would have been altered indefinitely. Soft drinks contain acids. Acid decreases the amount calcium in the enamel, making the tooth softer than usual. Acid dissolves tooth enamel, a process called “decalcification,” and can lead to cavities. Once the enamel component usually parts of it around the individual components of the braces is lost, it does not come back. The loss is permanent.
If you are having the treatment with aligners instead of fixed appliances, the same principle applies.
Ideally you refrain from having any acidic drinks or eat whilst you are wearing the aligners. The best way is to eat or drink after removing them, make sure your teeth and the aligners are clean and place them back as soon as you have finished eating or drinking.
During yours or your child’s brace treatment it would be best to avoid soft drinks, especially during the active phase of orthodontic treatment. You can substitute these drinks with water and/or milk, brush and floss when as instructed and use a fluoride-containing mouthwash. Stick to your regular dentist’s six monthly check ups or often if instructed.
