Sensitive Teeth? What Can You Do?

Sensitive teeth are such a nuisance; eating, chewing, drinking, or even brushing your teeth can be a painful experience when the teeth are sensitive. Sure, the pain is temporary but it can be quite a lot. Sensitive teeth are a result of worn down tooth enamel and exposed tooth roots. Sometimes, though, you can have tooth discomfort from other reasons like a cavity, a chipped or even cracked tooth, or other factors like bleaching.

If you have a lot of dental pain, contact your dentist to see what the cause is; they can identify the cause of your sensitive teeth. So assuming you have a confirmed diagnosis of sensitive teeth, what is it that you can do to help with the discomfort?

Well, it all depends on your case and the circumstances but the list of possible treatments will look something like this:

*Desensitizing toothpaste. You have probably seen commercials for various desensitizing toothpastes, like Sensodyne, that will help relieve the pain from sensitive teeth. What desensitizing toothpaste does is it eventually blocks the pain that is a result from the sensitive teeth. The toothpaste has a way to block the pain receptors, or nerves, so you can eat and drink hot or cold items without the discomfort.

*Fluoride. If you have weak enamel but it is still there, not completely removed yet, then fluoride might be on your list of treatments. Why? Well, because fluoride strengthens the enamel on your teeth and so if your enamel is weak, then the fluoride will help reverse that. Your dentist can apply some fluoride to that area and you can also get fluoride from your tap water. As a dentist in Park Ridge I encourage fluoridated water because it is an easy source of fluoride for teeth.

*Covering up your exposed roots. When you have exposed root surfaces, this can prove to be rather painful. Exposed roots usually happen when your gums recede and a way to fix this is to place sealant over the affected areas and let that take hold.

*Root canal. Yeah, you may have heard of this one before and probably nothing good; people do not tend to say, “I cannot wait for my root canal! Woo!” Your sensitive teeth can be so severe that if the other treatments did not prove worthy, then the only course of action could be a root canal; in a root canal, the dentist works on the dental pulp, or the tooth’s soft core.

If you have what you think are sensitive teeth, check with your dentist.