Sportsperson – take care of your teeth

In a study done by dentists, it was found that professional footballers in England and Wales have poor dental hygiene so much so that it could have an impact on their performance in the field.

187 players were subjected to a dental examination and the findings were as below:

• 53% had dental erosion
• 45% were bothered by the state of their teeth
• 7% said it affected their ability to train or play
• 40% had tooth decay, compared with 30% of people of a similar age in the general population

‘These are individuals who otherwise invest so much in themselves so it’s a surprising finding,’ Prof Ian Needleman, one of the researchers, said.

One of the primary suspects could be nutrition as most footballers have frequent consumption of sugary or acidic foods during training and that could potentially account for tooth decay and erosion.

Sportspersons and gymmers should be aware that the commercially available sports drink could damage their teeth.