TOOTH DECAY IS CONTAGIOUS

A recent news report from Nov. 2008 on tooth decay. Very important for parents to see!

http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_29269.aspx

Omg now i know why i make my kids brush their teeth morning and night even afte sweets! lol glad i dont dhare cups with em tho!

I've never known anyone share a toothbrush with their kids

I think most of this is common sense though although I would be surprised if tooth decay really was contagious!

I have to say i have never heard of anyone sharing a tooth brush with their kids either? I also think this sounds a load a rubbish tbh, i don't understand how anyone could 'catch' tooth decay? I think it is much more likely if you have tooth decay and share a tooth brush with someone else they could get a tummy bug due to the bacteria on the toothbrush from your decay! I do however think some people are born with less enamel or have weaker teeth that are more prone to decay, through acid erosion or similar. The report also just seemed common sense to me too, brush, use mouthwash, drink water. I think most of us do that anyway

It's not just about sharing your toothbrush. Sharing cups and straws is not good either. Yes some kids do that.
Tooth decay is caused by bacteria. Bacteria can spread around easily.

I agree that it isn't particularly good to share the same cup/straw with other people, there obviously would be bacteria on it as it has come into contact with saliva. However, i would be far more worried that someone is incubating a bug of some sort that i may catch, ie. a cold/flu or a tummy bug etc. The bacteria is much more likely to cause these problems than decide to attack my teeth IMO however, i am not a doctor or a dentist, and admit i may be completely wrong? i just think there may be more things to be concerned over than this, as it doesn't deem particularly likely

well i have shared cups with my children and they have perfect teeth even my 14 year old has no tooth decay at at all.

What a load of old rubbish!

Yeah there are more things you can get from other peoples germs.
Contagious tooth decay has been researched for validation for a few years. My daughter doesn't have tooth decay either. That just means that she never shared a drink or food with someone who does have tooth decay.
Tooth decya also comes from eating too much raw dark meat. I'm serious. People up north in my counrty do this and they have the most tooth decay in my country. It's caused by bacteria from the raw meat. It's those kids with the irresponsible parents that let their kids share food and drinks that cause it spread around. Of course it can be prevented by regularily brushing your teeth and going to the dentist at least once a year.

Lucy said:
well i have shared cups with my children and they have perfect teeth even my 14 year old has no tooth decay at at all.

What a load of old rubbish!

Im with you Lucy, What a lot of rubbush

glowingsun said:
Yeah there are more things you can get from other peoples germs.
Contagious tooth decay has been researched for validation for a few years. My daughter doesn't have tooth decay either. That just means that she never shared a drink or food with someone who does have tooth decay.
Tooth decya also comes from eating too much raw dark meat. I'm serious. People up north in my counrty do this and they have the most tooth decay in my country. It's caused by bacteria from the raw meat. It's those kids with the irresponsible parents that let their kids share food and drinks that cause it spread around. Of course it can be prevented by regularily brushing your teeth and going to the dentist at least once a year.

ok so im irresponsible am i?

I brush my teeth in the morning when i get up and i make no secret that i have fillings. So in a way i could have tooth decay, but my childrens teeth are perfect, Toms having orthodontic work, but he has no teeth decay and neither does Gemma. I have always shared cups and drinks with my children and so does my husband, obviously if we have colds and coldsores then we we do not.

I think this report is a load of rubbish and the key to perfect teeth is brushing and regular dental checkups!!

Its a bit like saying theres a cure for the common cold! Which we all know there is not!

Lucy said:

I think this report is a load of rubbish and the key to perfect teeth is brushing and regular dental checkups!!

i completely agree

this article is ridiculus! It's this kind of propaganda that makes some parents so over the top. Bacteria is of course everywhere, and yes (shock horror) people can catch things from each other but I would not stop sharing straws or cups!

This article seems like a way of scaring people into letting floride continue in our waters un-noticed. My husband and I are researchers and have worked on floride projects. As with other studies it showd that floride really only combats tooth decay when applied directly onto teeth (not from drinking it). If there is anything parents should read its the connections between floride and health problems and whether floride is being added to water in your area (its not in ours as anglian water don not want to risk the connection between excess floride consumption and cancer). It all sounds a bit fishy to me.

how can you check if your area has flouride added to your water supply


sorry im thread hijacking

soup said:
how can you check if your area has flouride added to your water supply


sorry im thread hijacking

Lol, i would be quite interested too though hun. i know there was some outrage about it being added or upped at one point.

I know we sometimes get quite a smell like swimming baths every so often from the water which bothers me. Its when we run the bath its noticeable the most, there's a smell like chlorine every so often.

I love your smiley Soup

the uk water filters website tells you the amounts in your area. If you have it you can always filter it out. Hoe that helps

im covered by Anglian water i wasnt sure if there was floride in the water or not thanks veganmama