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This Is Why Your Teeth Hurt Only After Drinking Juice

11 November 2019

Diane Mason

Sensitive teeth are a problem that plagues many people, but every person's experience is different. Some people will have sensitive teeth all day long, while others will have specific triggers, like drinking juice. If you've noticed that your teeth sting or feel sensitive after drinking juice and want to know more about it or simply don't want to give up on juice, here's what you need to know about this problem.

What Juice Contains

Juice of any kind typically contains acid. Citric acid is one type of acid that's prevalent in many juices, even those that don't naturally contain it, as it's sometimes used as a preservative.

As the name implies, the acid found in juice is, well, acidic! While the acid isn't very strong and shouldn't do any damage on its own, with enough exposure to it, it can potentially become a trigger for your sensitive teeth.

What It Does to Teeth

Acid can cause tooth sensitivity or just trigger it. It depends upon the person, but giving up on juice for a while is probably a good idea.

The citric acid found in juice tends to soften tooth enamel. This means that if your tooth enamel is weak, damaged, or thin, it can weaken to the point where the nerves underneath it effectively come into contact with what you're drinking. This is what you're experiencing as tooth sensitivity. It doesn't trigger when you drink other things because they don't contain that citric acid that softens the tooth enamel.

The Good (And Bad) News

The good news here is that citric acid's softening of tooth enamel isn't permanent. After saliva or water flushes away the citric acid, tooth enamel hardens again after a period of time. This means that it goes back to protecting your teeth, and you shouldn't have any sensitivity anymore.

Unfortunately, repeated exposure to citric acid - especially if you already have tooth damage - can ultimately cause tooth sensitivity or worse. As a result, if your morning juice is setting off your teeth, you should see this as a warning sign and get to a dentist's office immediately.

Tooth sensitivity doesn't have to lead to cavities, gum problems, or anything else, so long as you get help for it quickly. Don't let citric acid continue to cause pain for you on a daily basis. Get help from a dentist, get the problem fixed, and then you can go back to enjoying your acidic beverages without pain or worries.

For more information, contact a local dental clinic like Reston Family Dental Center. 

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