The Wonderful World Of Saliva

How the production of saliva plays an important role in maintaining good oral health.

If you are about to eat, you may want to refrain from reading this blog until you have done so. Saliva is not the ‘sexiest’ aspect of our human biology for sure. It is though absolutely essential for life in many ways. In today’s blog, we will look at the important role that saliva plays in helping us to maintain healthy teeth and gums.

The amount of saliva that we produce on a daily basis varies from person to person but is usually between 0.5 and 1.5 litres per day. Generally speaking (within reason) the more saliva we produce, the better it is for us. Saliva plays some important roles in general human health including helping to break down food into the various components so that we can obtain the maximum nutrition from them. In older people, a lack of saliva can sometimes make swallowing difficult and can lead to poor nutrition.

While saliva is predominantly made up of water (99%), it also contains other important components such as enzymes which play a major role in our digestion.

Saliva and oral health

We probably think about saliva very little at all, but without it, our teeth and gums would suffer quite rapidly and lead to a whole host of problems.

One quite basic but important function of saliva production is that it helps to wash away food particles after we have eaten. This doesn’t negate the need to brush our teeth of course but after we have eaten, our saliva will gradually flush away sugars and other food particles from the mouth, helping to prevent tooth decay. You can of course help this along by swilling the mouth with water after eating or simply by drinking it, but saliva is nature’s way of starting this process.

Another important area of oral health that is aided by a healthy saliva flow is in the prevention of gum disease. As readers of the Cygnet Dental Practice blogs will hopefully know, one of the main causes of gum disease is having a dry mouth. This can be a particular problem if you smoke or drink alcohol. Most of us will probably have woken up after a night out with a very dry mouth, sometimes accompanied by a sticky ‘goo’. This is actually a collection of bacteria, as, in a dry and warm environment such as a dry mouth, bacteria multiply more rapidly and attack the soft gum tissue. If this problem continues, it is very likely that this will result in either gingivitis or periodontitis which can lead to a host of unpleasant symptoms such as bleeding or inflamed gums, or worse still, may lead to loose teeth and even tooth loss.

Maintaining a healthy saliva flow

Given the importance of saliva in promoting good oral health, what can our Wickford patients do to ensure that they produce enough of this on a daily basis? While some people will naturally produce more than others, there are a number of ways that you can help this along.

1 – Drink plenty of water – Staying well hydrated is beneficial for our overall health and for our oral health. Given that 99% of saliva is made from water, it makes sense to make sure that we stay well hydrated in all weathers. Do try to do this by drinking plenty of water rather than sugary drinks though or tooth decay could rapidly become a problem.

2 – Chew sugar free chewing gum – Chewing most foods will produce additional saliva but chewing gum is an easy and convenient thing to do to help improve saliva flow. Make sure to use sugar free chewing gum though for reasons which are quite obvious.

3 – Avoid tobacco and alcohol – As mentioned earlier, smokers and regular or heavy drinkers of alcohol are likely to suffer from a dry mouth and increase the risk of gum disease. Conversely, quitting smoking and keeping alcohol consumption to a sensible level will help you maintain a healthy level of saliva and therefore a healthier mouth.

4 – See your GP – If, after all the above and generally living a healthy lifestyle, you find that you are suffering from a dry mouth, talk to your GP who may be able to help you through medication

Saliva and older people

One thing that we haven’t mentioned yet which can result in less saliva production is the age factor. Generally speaking, older people do produce less saliva and are often at a greater risk of gum disease and related effects such as halitosis, or bad breath. Some of the above tips may help and you should certainly contact your GP for help if you need it to enable you to have a healthy mouth well into old age.

See your dentist

It should go without saying that seeing your local dentist for regular check ups, along with the dental hygienist, is essential if you want to maintain healthy teeth and gums. Even a healthy saliva flow can present its own problems as it also contains minerals which can attach to the teeth in the form of tartar, or calculus, and form a rough surface that attracts more bacteria. This hard rough surface can only be removed professionally with a scale and polish procedure that the hygienist can carry out at our Wickford dental clinic.

And finally….

It is not only in the area of oral health that saliva has a reputation for promoting health benefits. As long ago as biblical times, Jesus is reputed to have restored a blind man’s sight by applying a mixture of mud and saliva to his eyes and the ancient Romans were big fans of saliva too, sometimes spitting on sick people, believing it would cure them of epilepsy and the like. They even used to spit into their right shoe for good luck!!  We certainly don’t recommend these but we do hope today’s blog has provided you with some useful information about the role of saliva in oral health care.

If you have any concerns about your teeth or your gum health and would like to discuss this with one of our dentists, you can do so by calling the Cygnet Dental Practice on 01268 733078 and arranging an appointment with us.