The importance of saliva in protecting your oral health

One of the keys in increasing a person’s immunity and oral health is saliva.

Yes, saliva is one of the main ingredients that contribute not just to your oral health but to your immunity as well.

According to a statistical measure made by the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research, more than 90% of adults experience tooth decay and gum disease, while at least 40% of children experience tooth decay and 65% gum disease.

That’s a whole lot of mouth problem.

Despite this predicament, there are ways in which you can create better oral health to you and your family, and one of those ways is all about saliva.

Saliva is a remineralizing agent.

Like a moisturiser, saliva is a mineralizing agent. The way it washes through the teeth, the mouth and the gums is an important role in adding nutrients and minerals to toughen oral mucosa. In order to support the process of mineralizing the teeth, there must be enough nutrition in your diet to produce good saliva.

When there is increased production of saliva, it benefits tooth decay prevention. Tooth decay happens due to remineralization and demineralization of the enamel surface and the mineral ions. Through saliva stimulation, diluting and buffering of plaque acid occurs that provides that extra kick of mineral ions within the plaque thereby promoting the process of mineralization.

Saliva maintains stable pH inside your mouth.

Oral ecology should be maintained at all cost. There are tons of ways where one can address oral health optimization but clearly, one of the actual means is by fuelling your saliva with appropriate nutrients to balance a salubrious oral mucosa.

Saliva reduces tooth decay and gum problems by reducing “bad bugs”.

There is a stable relationship between the decline in saliva production and the increase in gum disease. Unfortunately, this sort of shift happens as a person ages.

Saliva is that natural “pawn” that responds as a protective measure to the mouth’s immunity. Aside from compounds like lactoferrin which prevents those “bad bugs” from thriving in the mouth, there are also natural enzymes present in the saliva that maintains your mouth’s ecology. One of which is lysozyme that destabilizes bacterial cell walls that causes gum disease and tooth decay.

Good saliva.

The key to good saliva is in the quality of your nutrition, the amount of water you consume, any medications you may be on and how you breathe. Having good saliva is important in protecting the teeth from decay and gums from disease, but it is also just as important in the digestive system. Saliva is the first step in a good digestive system.

Concerned about your saliva? Ask our dentists or hygienists next time you’re in for more info.