What the Cheese!

Did you know that cheese is good for your teeth? According to a new study from the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD), cheese protects your pearly whites from acid erosion—the breakdown of enamel brought on by coffee, tea, wine, soda, and so on.

Cheese is also another saliva maker! Saliva also:

• Washes away food and debris from teeth and gums
• Helps moisten and break down food to ease swallowing and enhances ability to taste
• Provides disease-fighting substances throughout your mouth to help prevent cavities and other infections
• Helps keep the surface of your teeth strong by providing high levels of calcium, fluoride and phosphate ions at the tooth surface.

The calcium in cheese, and the calcium and phosphates in milk and other dairy products, help put back minerals your teeth might have lost due to other foods. “It looks like dairy does the mouthgood,” says Academy of General Dentistry spokesperson Dr. Seung-Hee Rhee, “Not only are dairy products a healthy alternative to carb- or sugar-filled snacks, they also may be considered as a preventive measure against cavities.” – Chasidy Alvarez