Licorice

Licorice can be your friend.  Licorice can also be your enemy…an enemy to your teeth. 

Licorice is arguably the best tasting snack to eat in a movie theater ever created.  Specifically, red licorice has a texture and taste that adds to the experience of movie enjoyment.  Licorice is also enjoyed in sports participation.  It’s a pleasant substitute for chewing tobacco as you can stick a licorice stick in your mouth while waiting in the outfield for a baseball line drive.  A single stick of licorice is seldom enough…once you have a bucket of licorice soon follows.

But licorice also has a dark side hidden within the pleasure of its bite.  There is a large content of sugar lurking in that stick of licorice.  With it is exposure to damage for your teeth.  Acting as an acid, licorice actually, insidiously, dissolves the enamel of your teeth.  Each time you chew a licorice stick, the resulting acid attack can last up 20 minutes. That leads to plaque buildup which in turn continues to eat away at the tooth’s enamel.

Cosmetic dentist, Dr. Coates has treatments for those coping with poor dental health due to over use of licorice.  Dr Coates is a Seal Beach dentist that specializes in both restorative and cosmetic dentistry.  He options ranging from cosmetic dentistry veneers to  dental crowns, Dr. Coates has the proper treatment for you.