Saliva pH and Tooth Health

[jj-]

If the pH of the saliva goes below 5.5, it begins to damage the tooth enamel.

The two most commonly advised ways to protect one's teeth are brushing and flossing. Yet, if the saliva becomes too acidic, it will erode our enamel the entire time we sleep.

Our culture unfortunately does not transmit important knowledge that is widely known among researchers to the general public.

The saliva pH is at its lowest point when we wake up in the morning. Testing it is easy. To do so, we spit on a piece of pH paper (without putting it in one's mouth, it might be toxic) upon waking up, before eating anything. If it's 5.5 or lower, one could increase it by consuming certain foods.

Testing urine pH can be valuable to figure out which foods increase your saliva pH, because foods that increase urine pH typically also increase saliva pH. While it's most valuable to test saliva pH in the morning, one could check how certain foods affect urine pH during the day. I found that milk is one food that reliably increases pH. Foods which have a reduced amount of minerals, such as greek yogurt or cottage cheese, do not help to increase the pH.

[angelatc]

If the pH of the saliva goes below 5.5, it begins to damage the tooth enamel.

Do you have a source?

[heavenlyboy34]

If the pH of the saliva goes below 5.5, it begins to damage the tooth enamel.

The two most commonly advised ways to protect one's teeth are brushing and flossing. Yet, if the saliva becomes too acidic, it will erode our enamel the entire time we sleep.

Our culture unfortunately does not transmit important knowledge that is widely known among researchers to the general public.

The saliva pH is at its lowest point when we wake up in the morning. Testing it is easy. To do so, we spit on a piece of pH paper (without putting it in one's mouth, it might be toxic) upon waking up, before eating anything. If it's 5.5 or lower, one could increase it by consuming certain foods.

Testing urine pH can be valuable to figure out which foods increase your saliva pH, because foods that increase urine pH typically also increase saliva pH. While it's most valuable to test saliva pH in the morning, one could check how certain foods affect urine pH during the day. I found that milk is one food that reliably increases pH. Foods which have a reduced amount of minerals, such as greek yogurt or cottage cheese, do not help to increase the pH.

Bolded is not true. Read the instructions on your ph paper box.

[angelatc]

Bolded is not true. Read the instructions on your ph paper box.

It does seem like there is something to this. NOt the pH paper stuff... I wish JJ would come back and give us some links.

[juleswin]

Please show your source. Don't be scared of angeltac, there enough people to back u up from unfounded attacks from her.

I think the article looks very amateurish. We need to check urine pH to find out which food increase pH? Alkalotic foods increase pH and acidic foods reduced pH. This is common knowledge.

But usually when u cannot regulate your body pH to the point it's 1 pts above or below normal range, it's generally a deeper problem than just what you eat. I am talking about organ failure or serious mineral deficit or excess.

So pretty please, post your source

[Suzanimal]

Please show your source. Don't be scared of angeltac, there enough people to back u up from unfounded attacks from her.

I think the article looks very amateurish. We need to check urine pH to find out which food increase pH? Alkalotic foods increase pH and acidic foods reduced pH. This is common knowledge.

But usually when u cannot regulate your body pH to the point it's 1 pts above or below normal range, it's generally a deeper problem than just what you eat. I am talking about organ failure or serious mineral deficit or excess.

So pretty please, post your source

I've heard of this before. I overheard my dentist telling someone in the next stall about it and asked him when it my turn. I don't remember everything he said, it's been awhile but I found this article.

Getting a cavity seems like delayed punishment for eating that special dessert every weekend or for the few days you forgot to floss. When you are doing everything right with minimal exception and a cavity is diagnosed, it is discouraging. Knowing how cavities form and what causes them is valuable in knowing how to prevent them. In this blog post, Drs. Paul Schwartzman, Kevin Healy, and Fabiana Steren Offit will help you understand cavities!

A cavity is not a one-time event. It is actually a symptom of a disease called caries. Tooth decay is a result of an active infection and condition in the mouth. There are ingredients to this infection, which include bacteria, acid, your tooth, and a food source. The main bacterial culprit is S. Mutans. Bacteria live in a housing structure called biofilm. This offers them protection, food, and an ideal replicating environment.

Biofilm can be healthy if there is a balance of good bacteria. When you have caries, the numbers of “bad” bacteria increase and produce an environment where they thrive and therefore cause tooth decay. A main indicator of this is a pH measurement of your saliva.

Several factors can influence the biofilm pH. Foods and beverages all have different pH levels. The lower the number, the higher the acidity. Since acid promotes tooth decay, a beverage like soda will promote a cavity. Water, being neutral, is a good choice to promote healthy oral pH. Healthy eating can still cause cavities. Here is an example of a highly acidic, yet traditionally healthy meal:

Toast with store-bought strawberry jam, and a cup of cottage cheese topped with fresh cranberries.

Instead, here is a better choice, which involves mixing acidic healthy foods with alkaline (non-acidic) foods to reduce the overall pH:

Toast with almond butter, and Greek yogurt topped with fresh blueberries.

The first example will result in a very low pH in the mouth and even in the rest of the body. The second meal mixes highly acidic blueberries with an alkaline Greek yogurt. Dairy products from cows are highly acidic. Toast is acidic because of the yeast and almonds are alkaline.

A natural buffer is saliva. Whenever mouth breathing or medications compromise the saliva flow, the pH is going to drop and caries can go rampant. Getting a cavity is not just about the sweets or forgotten flossing sessions. It is about the pH levels and bacterial management.

http://www.drschwartzman.com/blog/20...ding-cavities/

[juleswin]

I am not attacking anybody! A quick google search indicates there is some truth in this. All I wanted was more information.

Believe I know acid is not good for your teeth, my dentist told me after working on my 2 cavities that it may be due to the acidic content of the soda I drink a lot. But waking up with 5.0 pH from saliva alone? That is a sign of something systemic.

Btw, I agreed with her so much that it is the reason why I no longer drink soda today. But I now drink orange juice which is also acidic, I know it makes no sense.


And about u attacking people. You do attack people, you use a lot of ad hominem attack, personal insults and you have a tendency of smearing anyone who dares ask any question about vaccines as an anti vaxxer. Maybe you don't know it yet but you can be very abrasive in your engagement with people that disagree with u.

[presence]

they talk about the role of a fluoride rinse in the process and I wonder if there's an alternative

http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Life-...ds=birch+sugar






I brush my teeth once daily before bed with only baking soda (raises pH). I spit but do not rinse, then I dissolve about 1/2 tsp of birch sugar in my mouth immediately after brushing. I swallow, then go to bed; no rinse. I floss about twice a month.




zero cavities

[angelatc]

Believe I know acid is not good for your teeth, my dentist told me after working on my 2 cavities that it may be due to the acidic content of the soda I drink a lot. But waking up with 5.0 pH from saliva alone? That is a sign of something systemic..

I have heard that night time is bad for teeth because the saliva production slows. All this science surrounding the environment never occurred to me.

[donnay]

I like a tablespoon of Raw Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar in filtered water. I drink it two to three times a day--the last one before bedtime.

Remember the 80/20 rule!

The general recommendation to maintain a healthy pH is: Eat 80% alkaline-forming foods and 20% acid-forming foods.

When we talk about ‘acid-forming’ and ‘alkaline-forming,’ we are looking at how much acid the stomach has to produce in order to digest the food. An orange, even though it is acidic outside the body, when we eat it, the stomach has to produce almost no acid. Therefore, oranges are ‘alkaline-forming’. Apple cider vinegar is clearly acidic when sitting on your counter. But, inside your stomach, it becomes ‘akaline-forming,’ because the stomach has to produce almost no acid to digest it. Conversely, something like bread requires a lot of acid to digest, so it is considered to be ‘acid-forming’.

Source

[puppetmaster]

http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Life-...ds=birch+sugar






I brush my teeth once daily before bed with only baking soda (raises pH). I spit but do not rinse, then I dissolve about 1/2 tsp of birch sugar in my mouth immediately after brushing. I swallow, then go to bed; no rinse. I floss about twice a month.




zero cavities

good info thanks.

[TheCount]

I like a tablespoon of Raw Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar in filtered water. I drink it two to three times a day--the last one before bedtime.

Your theory being that putting an acid in your mouth will raise the PH of your mouth?

[jj-]

If the pH of the saliva goes below 5.5, it begins to damage the tooth enamel.

Do you have a source?

It's mentioned in the dental caries article in wikipedia: Link

Quote from the article:

When the pH at the surface of the tooth drops below 5.5, demineralization proceeds faster than remineralization (meaning that there is a net loss of mineral structure on the tooth's surface).

I also found it mentioned in many research papers about dental health.

[jj-]

I have heard that night time is bad for teeth because the saliva production slows. All this science surrounding the environment never occurred to me.

I think that's another factor. Hyposalivation is a different variable from saliva pH. Both are harmful. Hyposalivation can be caused for example by hypothyroidism.

Regarding saliva pH, I found it responsive to my food changes, as expected. More acid forming foods in a day tend to decrease the saliva pH the following morning.

[Cleaner44]

Do you have a source?

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Saliva+pH+and+Tooth+Health#

[CPUd]

I think that's another factor. Hyposalivation is a different variable from saliva pH. Both are harmful. Hyposalivation can be caused for example by hypothyroidism.

Regarding saliva pH, I found it responsive to my food changes, as expected. More acid forming foods in a day tend to decrease the saliva pH the following morning.

How do you ensure it's the pH of the saliva as it is secreted from your glands versus the pH after it mixes with the funk in your teeth?

[jj-]

How do you ensure it's the pH of the saliva as it is secreted from your glands versus the pH after it mixes with the funk in your teeth?

I have read many mentions that the 'funk' only affects 0.3 points or so. Regardless, if your value is 5.0, which I think is possible with an acidic diet, that's very different from, say, 6.5.

[heavenlyboy34]

How do you ensure it's the pH of the saliva as it is secreted from your glands versus the pH after it mixes with the funk in your teeth?

Check it first thing in the morning before you eat/drink anything. (I assume you clean your teeth at night, of course)

[amy31416]

It does seem like there is something to this. NOt the pH paper stuff... I wish JJ would come back and give us some links.

pH paper can have toxins, it can also contaminate things if you just dunk it into the liquid. Common practice is to use a glass stirrer or dropper and put a drop on the paper.

It is an interesting topic--and I think there's something to it. Acids eat away at certain things, and I've read that tooth enamel is one of them.

[donnay]

Your theory being that putting an acid in your mouth will raise the PH of your mouth?

You obviously have trouble reading. It is to bring your pH up and keep it up.

[TheCount]

You obviously have trouble reading. It is to bring your pH up and keep it up.

I read what you linked concerning stomach acid.


I must have missed the part where your stomach acid (or lack thereof) enters your mouth to affect the ph there.

[donnay]

I read what you linked concerning stomach acid.


I must have missed the part where your stomach acid (or lack thereof) enters your mouth to affect the ph there.

Here is more information with a picture.


Regulates Your Bodies pH

Apple cider vinegar contains acetic acid which is acidic in nature but has a more alkaline effect on the rest of your body. Balancing your bodies pH can reduce your risk of chronic illnesses like cancer and can dramatically increase your energy.


http://draxe.com/apple-cider-vinegar-uses/

[CPUd]

What do you mean by "body pH"?

[donnay]

What do you mean by "body pH"?

It helps balance out your body's pH. It is rich in ash which gives ACV its alkaline property.

[CPUd]

It helps balance out your body's pH. It is rich in ash which gives ACV its alkaline property.

What is "body's pH"?

[Zippyjuan]

Your body has numerous buffers to maintain its pH. You can't really change it by diet. By the time foods get to your stomach, it is already changing the pH of what you ate.

[donnay]

What is "body's pH"?

The pH scale is 0--14 a lower number means more acidity (less oxygen). A higher number means more alkalinity. Neutral is when the pH is between 7 and 7.4, which indicates your pH is neither more acidic or more alkaline--just right.

[CPUd]

The pH scale is 0--14 a lower number means more acidity (less oxygen). A higher number means more alkalinity. Neutral is when the pH is between 7 and 7.4, which indicates your pH is neither more acidic or more alkaline--just right.

What is the "body pH", and how do I measure it?

Also, more acidity does not mean less oxygen.

[juleswin]

The pH scale is 0--14 a lower number means more acidity (less oxygen). A higher number means more alkalinity. Neutral is when the pH is between 7 and 7.4, which indicates your pH is neither more acidic or more alkaline--just right.

pH is negative log of hydrogen ion concentration in solution, so its less hydrogen not oxygen. pH means potential of hydrogen. Acidic compounds are compounds that lose hydrogen in solution, alkaline compounds remove hydrogen ion from solution. Neutral pH is 7 which is also the pH of pure water.

[juleswin]

What is the "body pH", and how do I measure it?

Also, more acidity does not mean less oxygen.

Mainly when people talk about body pH, they are talking about blood pH which has a normal range of pH is 7.35 - 7.45. I guess you can buy a litmus test strips from the internet, cut yourself and check your blood pH or something like that.