Is Keto diet bad for your dental health?
The Keto diet is gaining huge popularity among people who want to get in shape because it helps people to shed their weight in time when compared to other popular diets. This diet plan focuses on losing weight by burning fat for energy instead of burning carbohydrates and sugars. Hence the ketogenic dieters have to reduce or even cut carbs from their menu.
Typically, the keto diet contains 75% fat, 20% protein, and carbohydrates just 5%. Several studies show that the low-carb diet has some therapeutic benefits for our bodies. In the meantime, it has some adverse effects also. Your dental health is not an exception. In this article, we have highlighted the positive and negative impacts of keto on oral health.
How is ketogenic diet good for our teeth and gums?
Carbohydrates contain a lot of sugar. When we take high-carb foods, our body turns them into glucose. Excessive blood sugar feeds oral bacteria to thrive. Cutting down the carbohydrates means eliminating sugar foods. It reduces the bacteria exposure to teeth and gums.
Thus keto dieters safeguard their teeth from acidic byproducts produced by harmful microbes in the mouth. It eats away the enamel, irritates gum tissues, and invites various dental problems. In simply, the keto diet protects your oral health in the following ways:
- Reduce oral bacteria
- Prevent cavities
- Less inflammation
- Prevent gum diseases
How does the keto diet affect our dental health?
Similar to other diet plans, ketogenic diet also has some mild hostile effects on our mouth. It occurs primarily due to the byproducts of ketones – acetone, acetoacetate, and beta-hydroxybutyrate. The negative effects include
- Bad Breath – It is also known as “Keto Breath” which has a sweet, fruity odor. It occurs due to the elevated levels of acetone instigated by fat burning. This is common in the initial stages of following keto diet and can be cope with drinking a lot of water and other dental hygiene activities.
- pH imbalance – Typically, our mouth needs an alkaline environment. Maintaining a restricted diet will alter the level of nutrients you intake and lead to a chemical imbalance in your body. Such chemical imbalance can rise or lower the alkalinity of saliva and disrupt the pH balance, causing an acidic environment in our mouth.
- Dry Mouth – pH imbalance followed by elevating the acidic environment will absorb saliva and cause dryness in the mouth. Dry mouth is linked to various problems like cavities, bad breath, etc.
- Loose teeth – The reduced nutrient intake is linked to the weakening of the bones. When the jaw bone weakens, the teeth attached to the bone also lose the bond, become loose and eventually lead to teeth loss.
What should you do to improve your oral health while following keto diet?
Consult your dietician to get the foods and drinks that do not disrupt your nutrient intake. Meanwhile, brush and floss your teeth efficiently to get rid of bad breath. The following activities also help you to get rid of keto breath:
- Chew sugarless chewing gums
- Add pleasant-smelling herbs in water
- Use mouthwashes when you sense a filthy smell in your mouth.
We do not mean that keto diet is bad for your teeth. It becomes problematic for your dental health when the nutritional balance is disturbed due to excessive intake of keto-friendly foods. In the meantime, you can cope and protect your oral cavity by taking appropriate foods and an effective dental hygiene routine.
