In 2008/2009 I had to spend more time than I would have liked visiting my dentist. One reason being that I had two cavities on my front teeth, specifically on my canines.
How is this related to cycling? Well, the dentist was surprised by the fact that someone my age had cavities there. We talked about possible etiology and after ruling out methamphetamine use, I'm mildly certain this condition has some causality in drinking sweetened sports drinks during long rides.
So I switched sports drinks. Part of my reason for choosing Hammer Nutrition product is that they're not sweetened with sugar (sucrose or glucose or syrups). In fact, their short endurance product (heed) is lightly sweetened with Stevia and Xylitol.
Xylitol is supposed to actually be good for your teeth.
In addition to switching endurance drinks I'm making an effort to keep fuel and hydration separate, especially for rides over two hours. The rational being that I can consume a bit of nutrition/energy, then wash/rinse it down with plain water. It's not as good as brushing one's teeth but the water ought to be healthier for teeth and gums than consuming a sugary drink for hours at a time.
As an added benefit, click the link to get 15% off the first order from Hammer Nutrition.
Saturday, June 06, 2009
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2 comments:
That is something that I've not thought about before. I suppose I dodge a bullet by not relying on sweet drinks much.
Thanks for the article. Sports Nutrition can be very helpful but you should do research before you decide which one you are gonna use.
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