Why You Should Be Drinking Soda Through a Straw
For months, even years, we have been warning everyone against the dangers of drinking soft drinks. They are not only dangerous for your overall health, but also a danger to your oral health. Now, having said that, we also realize sooner or later, you or your children are going to want that sugary drink. After all, what goes better with BBQ than a Dr. Pepper, right?
So, if you or your children are going to have a soda, just do us a favor and drink it through a straw. And here’s why…
Most soft drinks are sugary, acidic, or both. This is not exactly a good combination for your teeth. When you take a sip of a soda normally, you probably let it pass over your gums, then relish in its sweetness as it passes over the tongue, throughout the mouth, until you finally swallow it.
The problem, though, is that as you take that sip, it is covering your teeth with all of those sugars and acids. If this is not quickly addressed (and let’s face facts, you are not going to chase every sip of soda down with some water), it will erode the dental enamel and eventually lead to cavities.
By drinking soda through a straw, you are deciding where the flow of the soda goes. So, you should not only be drinking it through a straw, but also positioning the straw towards the back of the mouth to limit its exposure to your teeth. This will enable you to still enjoy everything you desire in the soda, but also help protect your teeth.
Drinking soda in this manner will more or less limit the very rear teeth to being exposed to the dangers of soda. However, you need to keep in mind these are also the toughest teeth to brush and keep clean. Now is where the water comes in. When you are done that plate of BBQ and take the last sip of your Dr. Pepper, that is the time to rinse everything down with a sip of water. Not only that, but you need to be "that" person that swishes the water around to wash the soda off your teeth as well as helping to remove any food particles stuck between your teeth.
Do that, and you should be good to go until you get home and can brush your teeth before you go to bed. Do that, and you just might avoid some costly dental bills down the road.
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