Food for Oral Health

Sugar

Sugar is the main culprit in tooth decay. The simplest of carbohydrate is digested in the oral plaque by bacteria in your mouth that then produce acids and inflammation. It's the lactic acid by-product produced by the bacteria that dissolves the crystal mineral of the tooth enamel and irritates the gums causing bleeding, (or worse).
The tooth enamel is generally very strong - and if the acid attack is removed it can 'heal' or remineralize (arrested lesions). But if it's too late and there's an impossible to clean hole in the enamel armor (a cavitated lesion), then the hole will get bigger and break down the tooth entirely. Your dentist is looking for these problems so the tooth can be filled and repaired and shaped so it can be cleaned properly.
Sugar foods and drink: simple sugars have many names and are added to many foods, definitely in candy , sweet drinks, and added to yogurt, most processed foods, they also occur naturally in whole foods such as fruit and and dried fruit.
There are several tooth friendly sweeteners available, such as xylitol, dknghodgho

Starches

These are non-sugar sugars! Essentially enzymes in our mouth breakdown these ingredients into sugars that our bacteria can digest and also affect blood sugar levels. These foods are often crunchy and sticky - turning into a sugar paste stuck to the teeth, especially the areas our tongue has trouble cleaning - between teeth, deep grooves, cheeks. Examples are wheat crackers, including Goldfish, bread, rice,

Acidic Foods

Your teeth can be dissolved by acids from dental plaque, but also directly by acidic food and drinks. The type of bacteria that that damage teeth love an acid environment. Vinegar, citrus, juices and sodas are the main exposures. Lemon is particularly hard on tooth enamel because it dissolves enamel and grabs onto the calcium thus preventing remineralization. Also note that gastric acid reflux disease (GERD or heartburn) can severely damage teeth. Tooth damage due to acid is called erosion, and enamel can be quite resistant, but add in grinding habits or dentin exposure and the process speeds up.

Exposure Time

As above, it's about acids but also important is the length of time the acid is on the tooth. Sticky sugar foods can feed plaque bacteria for hours hidden in the nooks and crannies of the mouth. Dried fruit such as sweetened cranberries or mango seem like a healthy choice, but they are sticky and full of natural sugars.
Snacking and sipping on sugary or acidic foods all day will also feed your plaque bacteria all day. This includes slowly sipping a sweet coffee drink, bubbly water (acidic) and especially lemon bubbly water.

Dry mouth

Your body is smart and your mouth is an excellent system - your saliva is designed to wash and strengthen your teeth. Saliva not only helps rinse sticky food off your teeth, but it is full of minerals to help heal your tooth from acids, and is slight basic in pH. After an acidic drink, your helpful saliva can neutralize the acid in your mouth, but it takes 20 minutes to 1 hour. That means that if your are sipping lemon water every 20 minutes, for example, your saliva never gets to do it's job.
Additionally, a very dry mouth with little salivary flow is at high risk for dental decay. Many medications cause dry mouth and people with this need to discuss managment techniques with their hygienists. These include staying well hydrated, extra care and tooth protection (fluoride toothpaste/rinces), and salivary stimulation.

Help your teeth be strong

Vitamins and minerals are essential for healthy teeth and gums. An careful assessment with a nutritionist is the best way to evaluate where you may need supplements. Generally, following the Canada Food Guide to eat whole, non-processed foods should give us the nutrients we need. Sometimes how we eat them adds to how useful they are - like a vegetable with vitamin C increases our uptake of iron. Or how we need our magnesium with our calcium. Fortunately real non-processed foods generally contain a good balance. Dentally speaking, all these are good for gums and teeth, as they have less sugar and tend to be less sticky - not dried or crunchy.
Vitamin C is essential for healthy connective tissue and gums.
Vitamin D is essential for strong teeth and bones. We do recommend a Vitamin D supplement for all adults and children because the regular source is sunlight, and we have little exposure.

Best snacks for teeth

The best snacks are natural non-processed foods such as fresh vegetables, cheese, fresh fruit, eggs, bread over crackers, ,