Crack! 4 Foods That Can Easily Break Your Teeth

Out of all the materials in your body, your tooth enamel is the strongest, but that doesn’t mean teeth are impervious to breaking. Enamel makes up just the small outer layer of teeth with softer, more sensitive layers underneath. When this material undergoes too much stress, it can crack, exposing the center.

Because of teeth’s vulnerability, you shouldn’t chew on pens or pencils as well as other objects that don’t belong in your mouth. But even certain kinds of food may be risky! Although you should be able to handle biting and chewing most foods easily, others can increase your risk of cracking a tooth or two.

Ice

At a restaurant or at home, adding ice to your drink keeps it chilled and refreshing; however, you should not ever bite or chew on bits of ice. It may be made of water but remember that ice is a solid material that places force on the thin layer of enamel. Repeatedly breaking up ice with your teeth is begging to create fractures that could eventually lead to deeper, more painful damage.

Hard Candy

In many ways, sweet treats spell trouble for oral health, but hard candy can cause the enamel to crack if you don’t eat it correctly. Most hard candy is not intended to be bitten and chewed. You’re supposed to suck on it, savoring the flavor, but a moment of impatience can lead to dental fracture.

This sugar has been heated and cooked to a certain temperature, allowing the candy to be dyed and shaped. When it cools, it becomes too hard and brittle for you to bite down on it. Even thin or small pieces of hard candy can result in a chipped or cracked tooth.

Nuts and Seeds

Nuts and seeds can be a valuable source of nutrients, but in some circumstances, they can be dangerous for your smile. For instance, if you use your teeth to get nuts or seeds out of the shell, you can put too much pressure on the enamel. Needless to say, you should be cautious when eating sunflower seeds, almonds, and others while also avoiding popcorn kernels as much as possible.

Foods with Hidden Pits or Cores

Even fruits and vegetables, which are among the healthiest foods to eat, may pose a threat to your tooth enamel. For instance, if you bite too far into corn on the cob, the hard center could crack your front teeth. Fresh peaches, plums, cherries, and olives are other examples of foods with pits in the middle. Unless you’re careful and deliberate in your bites, you could press forcefully on the pit, fracturing the thin enamel.

In the end, it’s important to be cautious about what you’re eating and how you eat it. Expecting your teeth to bite and grind certain foods can wear down your enamel or cause it to crack, subjecting your teeth to infection and damage. So, make smart decisions and stay alert!

About the Practice

Boyles General Dentistry has served the Odessa and surrounding communities for more than 40 years. Dr. Franklin Boyles and his son Dr. Stephen Boyles are both masters of the Academy of General Dentistry, which only a small percentage of dentists achieve nationwide. Although we can provide emergency treatment for cracked teeth, we prefer to help our patients avoid this damage. If you have questions about cracked teeth, contact our office online or call 432-366-0896.