“Why are some teeth more prone to cavities?”
I am a 21 year old female. I want to know why are some teeth more prone to cavities?
5 Answers
Genes.
Some teeth, like the upper and lower molars, the big teeth at the back, have multiple grooves on the chewing areas, plus little deep holes, that are important part of their shape, their anatomy where plaque(food) collects and harbors bacteria, that causes cavities. That is why good regular brushing is so important to remove the bacteria.
Usually either anatomy that is either easily cleaned of plaque or anatomy that can trap food and plaque from easy access to brushing and flossing. Also there is variation in the mineral content of the enamel due primarily to genetic variations. Unless there are other intervening medical factors even susceptible teeth can equally be cleaned for equal resistance with correct hygiene practices and judicious dietary choices.
Defects in the teeth possibly.
Hello,
This is a good question to be asking. Different teeth are prone to cavities because of the nature of what we eat and how we eat it. Remember cavities are caused by bacteria and those bacteria need sugars to grow and ferment lactic acid which breaks down your enamel. Now when we eat foods with sugar or most foods in general we chew them with our back teeth. Our front teeth are not for chewing, they are for biting into things. We do not need to do this as much as other animals because we have the ability to cut up our food and we do not bite into things as much. Regardless, we take one bite into a sandwich and then we chew for a minute with our back teeth. The back teeth grind up all the sugar (glucose) and mash it into each other. Now as far as some back teeth over others, there is a hierarchy of back teeth based on tooth size, location, and the way our jaws come together. We also have to remember that we need to floss to prevent cavities in the sides of our teeth, and it is a lot harder to floss back teeth.
Hope this helps.
Best of luck to you!
William F. Scott IV, DMD
This is a good question to be asking. Different teeth are prone to cavities because of the nature of what we eat and how we eat it. Remember cavities are caused by bacteria and those bacteria need sugars to grow and ferment lactic acid which breaks down your enamel. Now when we eat foods with sugar or most foods in general we chew them with our back teeth. Our front teeth are not for chewing, they are for biting into things. We do not need to do this as much as other animals because we have the ability to cut up our food and we do not bite into things as much. Regardless, we take one bite into a sandwich and then we chew for a minute with our back teeth. The back teeth grind up all the sugar (glucose) and mash it into each other. Now as far as some back teeth over others, there is a hierarchy of back teeth based on tooth size, location, and the way our jaws come together. We also have to remember that we need to floss to prevent cavities in the sides of our teeth, and it is a lot harder to floss back teeth.
Hope this helps.
Best of luck to you!
William F. Scott IV, DMD
