Is sugar the new tobacco?

Once upon a time, smoking was considered the epitome of cool and lighting up indoors was the norm. But, as the health risks of tobacco become better understood, the number of smokers in the UK has fallen to an all-time low. So, could consuming too much sugar hold the same stigma in the future as smoking does now?

Leading public health experts would certainly like to think so. With recent initiatives, such as a ban on cigarettes from shop displays, having an impact, health chiefs have turned their attention to sugar.

A series of television advertisements from public health initiative Change4Life is being broadcast with a message about cutting down the amount of sugar in children’s diets. An animated modelling clay family shows how swapping fizzy drinks for water or eating low-sugar yoghurt instead of ice-cream can make a huge impact on sugar consumption. And, while food containing a high percentage of sugar isn’t hidden from view in the same way cigarettes are, some of the country’s major supermarkets, including Tesco and Lidl, have removed sweets and chocolates from check-outs to make it easier for parents to make healthy eating choices for their children.

When you consider the effects of obesity, it’s hardly surprising that the public health drive has stepped up a notch. NHS chief executive Simon Stevens told the Public Health England annual conference:
“Obesity is the new smoking. It represents a slow-motion car crash in terms of avoidable illness and rising health care costs. “If, as a nation, we keep piling on the pounds around the waistline, we’ll be piling on the pounds in terms of future taxes needed just to keep the NHS afloat.”

As well, of course, as the negative impact on the waistlines of a nation, too much sugar can have a very detrimental effect on our teeth. Sugar causes decay because the bacteria in your mouth use it as an energy source and acid is formed as a by-product of this, which can lead to cavities. Once enamel becomes eroded, teeth lose their natural protection and are more prone to staining.

According to statistics for the last financial year, almost 26,000 primary school children were treated for tooth decay, making it the most common reason youngsters were admitted to hospital during 2013/14. In the worst cases, dentists reported having to remove all 20 of some children’s baby teeth. Graham Barnby, honorary vice-president of the British Dental Health Foundation said the issue was caused by the “consumption of sugary, fizzy drinks.”

Television presenter Davina McCall has also thrust the amount of sugar we eat into the limelight by cutting refined sugar from her diet. Davina, who fronts shows including The Jump and Long Lost Family, revealed she had been “horrifically addicted” to sugar but started a sugar-free diet when her sister was advised to reduce her own intake following a cancer diagnosis. Sadly, her sister lost her cancer battle, but Davina has continued to pursue a healthier food philosophy.

“The benefits of cutting out sugar are ridiculous,” she said in an interview earlier this year.
Perhaps then, in the future, those who drink fizzy drinks or eat sugary snacks will find themselves on the receiving end of the same sort of social stigma as smokers experience now.

Matthew Lloyd, Dentist and Clinical Director at WhiteWash Laboratories

Tooth Brush your way to a healthier heart!

It may surprise you to know that brushing your teeth and keeping your mouth healthy could actually save your life.

Many people aren’t aware that gum disease can increase your risk of all kinds of other health complications, including heart disease and heart attacks, with only one in three adults aware of the dangerous link.

Gum disease can essentially be stopped by using the correct brushing and flossing routine, but is estimated to affect more than half of all adults in the UK. The Children’s Dental Health Survey for England has found nearly half of eight-year-olds and a third of five-year-olds have signs of decay in their milk teeth too, caused by poor brushing and diet, which is a rather depressing finding.

Gum disease is an infection of the gums caused by a build-up of plaque bacteria on the teeth, these bacteria use the food and drink we eat to produce acids which cause tooth decay and the bacteria also irritates the gums causing them to bleed. Some bacteria in plaque are harmless, but some are extremely harmful for the gums and, if not removed by following a good oral hygiene routine, will build up and irritate your gums.

Symptoms of early onset gum disease or ‘gingivitis’ to look out for include red, sore and swollen gums and bleeding gums after brushing or flossing. As gum disease progresses, the tissues and bone that support the teeth can also become affected and can cause bad breath, an unpleasant taste in your mouth, loose teeth and potentially gum abscesses.

However, you may not have any symptoms, which makes those regular trips to the dentist all the more important.

So, what has this got to do with your heart? Intense gum inflammation can affect the bloodstream and is believed to slowly damage blood vessels in the heart and brain over a long period of time and, scientists believe, bacteria entering the bloodstream via the gums deposit a clot-forming protein. This can increase the risk of a heart attack in a number of ways, as inflamed blood vessels and blockages allow less blood to travel between the heart and the rest of the body, raising blood pressure. There’s also an increased risk that fatty plaque will break away from the wall of a blood vessel and travel to the heart or the brain, potentially causing a heart attack or stroke.

A recent study conducted by the European Society of Cardiology of more than 15,000 patients with chronic coronary heart disease found that indicators of gum disease, such as missing teeth and bleeding gums, were common and associated with numerous cardiovascular and socioeconomic risk factors.

On the other hand, a lower prevalence of tooth loss was associated with lower levels of heart disease risk factors, including lower blood glucose levels, systolic blood pressure and waist circumference.

Smoking and having a poor diet are known contributing factors to serious health issues such as diabetes or heart disease and are also linked to poor dental hygiene.
However, it’s not just heart disease that gum disease has close links to; it’s also associated with osteoporosis, stroke, diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

So how can you prevent or treat gum disease? It’s vital that you follow a good oral hygiene routine, which includes brushing your teeth correctly for at least two minutes twice a day, cleaning between your teeth with floss or interdental brushes, using a mouthwash, visiting your dentist and dental hygienist regularly and following dietary advice, which can help to improve your overall health and reduce your risk of serious health problems.
 
Next time you pick up your toothbrush, remember that it’s not just a tool for achieving the perfect smile, but could help to save your life.
 
Matthew Lloyd, Dentist and Clinical Director of WhiteWash Laboratories

How much sugar is too much?

With all the chat around sugar, we want to help you understand exactly how sugar is classified, how much you should be consuming, and how to work out the amount of sugar there is in different foods and drinks, to help you reduce your intake.

What is Sugar?

Sugar is classed in two ways:

1.   FREE SUGARS – sugar added to food and drink (even food like soup, yogurt and crisps), as well as sugar found naturally in honey, syrups, fruit juices and fruit juice concentrates

2.   NATURALLY OCCURRING SUGARS – found in fruit and milk

How much sugar should we consume?

In the UK, there are lots of figures out there so it can get confusing. Let’s break it down:

·     The reference intake – the Government’s guideline daily amount – for sugar is a maximum of 90g per day for the average adult, but they don’t provide specific guidelines for children. Also worth noting is that this figure covers both naturally occurring and free sugars, so use the Government’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) recommendations to understand your free sugar consumption

·    The SACN gives guidance on the consumption of free sugars. They recommend that our daily intake should be less than 5% of our total energy intake. So what does that really mean?  

·   Children aged 4 to 6 should have no more than 19g or 5 teaspoons of free sugars per day

·   Children aged 7 to 10 should have no more than 24g or 6 teaspoons of free sugars per day

  

·   Children aged 11 years and upwards, as well as adults, should have no more than 30g or 7 teaspoons of free sugar per day

To put this into perspective, a typical 330ml can of fizzy drink can contain up to 35g or 9 teaspoons of free sugar.

How much sugar is there in our food and drink?

Sugar is added to all sorts of foods and drinks to make them taste sweet or to preserve their flavour. And it’s not just found in products you’d expect, such as cakes, biscuits, fizzy drinks and desserts. You’ll also find it in things like baked beans, bread and cereal. So, make sure you check the ingredients list on the label so you know how much sugar a product contains.

Things to look out for:

·     Added sugar or free sugars – the ones we want to cut down on – aren’t always labelled as sugar, so can be tricky to spot. The following are all sugars: agave nectar, corn sweetener, dextrose, honey, corn syrup, sucrose, fructose, glucose and molasses. Make sure you read the labels

·     Food labels list the ingredients in descending order, so in general the higher sugar appears in the list, the more that product contains

·     For extra clarity, use the nutritional information panel on the back of the pack. Sugar is listed as ‘of which sugars’ and is the total sugar content per serving and/or per 100g. But, this figure doesn’t distinguish between naturally occurring sugars and free sugars, so read the ingredients list too to give yourself an idea of whether there are likely to be any naturally occurring sugars in that product

·     In the UK, many food and drink manufacturers now use traffic light labeling on front of pack as well, signposting key nutrient values – including sugar, saturated fat and salt – as green, amber or red (low, medium or high). Use this information to educate yourself. As a general rule, most of the time you should aim to choose food and drinks that are mainly green and amber across all values, not just sugar!

 

SUGAR & YOUR HEALTH

The reality is that consuming too much sugar will have a detrimental effect on your health.

·     Sugar provides the body with empty calories that give us energy without any nutrients. As a result, we eat more without feeling full or satisfied. This leads to an increased risk of weight gain, certain diseases, and a cycle of highs and lows in  energy levels, which will leave you feeling tired and craving even more sugar.

·     Frequent consumption can lead to tooth decay. A report by the Royal College of Surgeons published earlier this year showed tooth decay to be the most common reason 5-9 year olds were admitted to hospital

·     It can also lead to type-2 diabetes, the levels of which have risen dramatically in recent years. Being overweight or obese also increases your risk of developing the disease. Diabetes UK reports that there are currently 3.3 million people in the UK living with diabetes, and many of these cases are type-2

 

WHAT TO REMEMBER

The key thing to remember is that overall, eating healthily is all about balance. Indulgent foods, such as those high in fat and/or sugar, can be enjoyed and savoured, but only occasionally, not every day. The majority of our diet should be made up of balanced, nutritious everyday foods.  

The menopause - beware the impact on your dental health

Menopause, be aware it has an important impact on your dental health.

 

The menopause is a very important stage in a woman's life. It can be a very slow process beginning with perimenopause which is when a woman first begins to experience climatic symptoms and ultimately culminates with the end of menstruation,

During menopause there is a severe decrease in the levels of oestrogen and progesterone. This change and imbalance as well known can cause a variety of symptoms, including mood swings, hot flushes, night sweats and irritability. This low level of hormones can also play a large part in the onset of osteoporosis.Most of the above is well documented and information readily available for women

Far less is known about the effect menopause is having on your dental health. The changes in oestrogen can affect the joints in the mouth, salivary glands as well as taste buds. Changes in your salivary function can cause the mucous membranes in your mouth to become less moist and often leave menopausal women with a persistent dry mouth or burning sensation, sometimes alongside a bitter taste and bad breath.

During the menopause the changes also increase likelihood of dental caries (decay), lichen planus and plaque, which is then responsible for initiating gingivitis, there by providing a contributing factor for periodontitis in menopause.

As professionals we are very aware the menopause can be a delicate subject to many women. We therefore try to be sensitive whilst at the same time, keeping our patients informed and supported, enabling them to manage and maintain their dental health. We have a variety of solutions to offer those suffering with a dry mouth and  bad breath and work with you to keep plaque levels to an absolute minimum. Our aim always being to make our patients aware, and keep them healthy and happy

 Do contact us if you would like any further information, help or advice 01548 852165 or info@absolute-dental.co.uk

Absolute Dental are Proud to be a sponsor of the Kingsbridge Show again this year!

The Kingsbridge Show is celebrating it's 134th year, and it hopes to be bigger and better than 2014’s show which saw over 9,500 visitors attend. The show is on this Saturday (Sept 5th) from 9am until 5.30pm.

This is a fantastic day out for all the family offering classes in Horses (obviously this is what we horse mad folk here at Absolute Dental have chosen to sponsor!), Cattle, Sheep, Homecraft, Young Farmers, Horticulture, Floral Art and Dog Show!

 

In addition to this there are over 100 Trade Stands, 70 Craft stands, 20 local food and drinks stands, Kingsbridge Children’s Youth Market, Children’s Pets Corner, Donkey rides, Vintage and Modern Tractors, Live Folk Style Music, a licensed bar and a wide range of main ring attractions (including the Portsmouth Action Field Gun Crew this year, falconry displays and the ever popular Terrier Racing!!! ).

Parking is free but for those of you wishing to be eco friendly or make use of the bar and locally produced goodies there will be a FREE bus running from Kingsbridge Quay.

What a fantastic way to spend a Saturday!