How RECALDENT™ Helps Teeth

To help you fully understand how RECALDENT™ helps your teeth, it's important to understand the process of tooth decay.

What is tooth decay?

Tooth decay is a location on a tooth where its mineral content has been dissolved away and a hole has formed (through a process known as demineralization). The surface of a tooth (where tooth decay begins) is composed of types of tissues that have a very high concentration of the minerals calcium and phosphate. These tissues are known as enamel and dentin. Demineralization of a tooth is caused by acids; acids that are created by certain types of bacteria that live in our mouths.

The bacteria that are capable of causing cavities consume sugars and other carbohydrates as food. The waste products these bacteria create from having consumed these sugars are the acids (especially lactic acid) that cause demineralization.

When we ingest foods which contain sugars (such as soft drinks, confectionery, and even fruits and vegetables or the juices made from them) the bacteria will break down these sugars, and within minutes they start producing the acids that cause tooth decay.

Why is Remineralization important?

Remineralization is the process of replacing the essential minerals lost from teeth by demineralization, and occurs when calcium and phosphate are returned to the tooth structure. Saliva, which contains calcium and phosphate, is important for remineralisation.

The demineralization and remineralization process is continuous and can be influenced by what you eat, the quality and quantity of saliva you produce, and oral hygiene.

That's why chewing sugarless gum is good for your teeth - it stimulates saliva, which contains calcium and phosphate that help to remineralize tooth enamel. But often there's not enough calcium and phosphate in the saliva to totally replace the lost mineral, which can lead to larger and larger areas of demineralized enamel, and eventually tooth decay. And that's where RECALDENT™ (CPP-ACP) comes in.