HOUSTON (1080 KRLD)- Face masks are necessary, but there's one side effect that not many have considered: cavities.
Dr. Piya Ghandi is a pediatric dentist in Houston at West U Pediatric dentistry.
She says the problem stems not from the face mask itself, but from the way we tend to breathe when wearing it. Ghandi reveals many of us breathe through our mouth instead of our nose, which makes our mouths dry.
Dr. Ghandi said: "Those with a dry mouth tend to get more cavities.
Why? Because our saliva is one of the ways we protect our teeth from getting cavities. So, as the saliva is in our mouth, it's constantly rewetting our teeth and making it less prone to cavities.
Since we are drying out our mouth by breathing through it, the risk of cavities becomes greater.
Ghandi recommends taking many water breaks, chewing sugar free gum, and using mouthwash with flouride that is not alcohol based.
LISTEN NOW on the RADIO.COM App
Follow RADIO.COM
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram