During a Minnesota summer, swimming is a popular activity to beat the heat. While swimming is one of the best exercises for fitness, frequent exposure to chlorine can impact your oral health. If you plan on hitting the pool this summer, here’s how you can protect your teeth from swimmer’s teeth.
What Is Swimmer’s Calculus or Swimmer’s Teeth?
Swimmer’s Teeth happens when you have too much exposure to chlorine and it stains your teeth brown or yellow. It is more frequent in pools with a high pH imbalance, and it’s most common in competitive swimmers or those or swim in pools regularly.
Chlorine and Teeth Impact
So, why does chlorine give “Swimmer’s Teeth” to more those who swim often?
Unfortunately, chlorine lowers your pH. This can lead to tooth enamel erosion, which may increase your tooth sensitivity, irritate your gums and lips, and stain your teeth.
Signs of Swimmer’s Teeth
If you see brown or yellow discoloration on your front teeth, or experience tooth sensitivity after swimming in a pool, this could be a sign that chlorine is affecting your oral health. Getting dry mouth or feeling a burning sensation in your mouth could also indicate that your teeth are being affected by the pool chlorine.
How to Prevent Chlorine and Teeth Problems
If you swim regularly, it’s important to take precautions so you don’t have Swimmer’s Teeth. While you’re swimming, we recommend keeping your mouth closed so chlorine doesn’t enter your mouth. We also recommend rinsing your mouth with fluoride or water afterwards to flush out any lingering chemicals.
Lastly, it’s important to visit your dentist regularly for your bi-annual dental checkup. This will help make sure that you don’t develop severe problems down the road.
How to Treat Swimmer’s Teeth
If you find that your teeth are discolored from chlorine, we can provide a professional dental cleaning that will treat Swimmer’s Calculus. If stains persist, you can try fluoride or teeth whitening treatments to get rid of discoloration as well.
Dentist in St. Louis Park, MN and Bloomington, MN
If you have been struggling with swimmer’s teeth, we would love to help! You can make an appointment online at one of our St. Louis Park or Bloomington, MN dental locations and we’d be happy to get you started on your journey to a healthy, beautiful smile!
