In order to have healthy teeth, you have to do more than brush your teeth at least twice a day and floss on a regular basis. You also need to make sure that you are providing your body with the nutrients it needs to keep your teeth healthy and strong. Here are three ways you can change your diet and improve your dental health at the same time. 

Increase Your Calcium Intake

Your teeth and your gums are primarily composed of calcium. Since calcium is one of the primary components of your teeth and your gums, it is important that you supply your body with calcium on a daily basis. This will allow the calcium in your teeth and gums to be replenished, and will help keep them strong and healthy. Depending on your age and your sex, you need between 1,000 to 1,300 mg of calcium per day. 

You can find high levels of calcium in dairy products such as milk, yogurt and cheese.

If you don't eat dairy products, you can still get the calcium you need from food in your daily diet. Many milk alternatives, such as soy milk and almond milk, contain high levels of calcium. You can also get the calcium you need from fortified cereals, tofu, soybeans, sardines, salmon, molasses and collard greens.

Make Sure You Get In Your Vitamin C

You also need to make sure that you get in vitamin C every day. Getting an adequate amount of vitamin C can prevent a host of dental health problems, ranging from bleeding gums all the way to loose teeth. 

There are lots of foods that you can get your daily dose of vitamin C from, including:

• bell peppers
• guavas
• dark green leafy vegetables
• papaya
• cooked tomatoes
• peas
• citrus fruits
• kiwi
• broccoli
• berries
• cabbage
• cauliflower
• Brussels sprouts
• mango 
• pineapple
• honeydew
• cantaloupe

Basically, if you load up on your fruits and vegetables, you should be able to provide your teeth with the vitamin C they need to stay healthy. 

Help Your Mouth Produce Saliva

Finally, you need to make sure that your diet includes foods that help your body create saliva. Saliva helps your mouth fight off bacteria that try to take up residency and compromise your oral health. 

One of the easiest ways to help your body produce saliva is by drinking water and eating foods that have a high water content. Sour foods will also help your body produce saliva.

If you want to have great dental health, you need to make sure that you are getting enough calcium and vitamin C in your diet, and you need to make sure that your mouth is wet and not dry all day long. Most of this can be accomplished by increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables that you consume every day, as well as by increasing your water intake. Talk to a dentist, like those at Family Dental Center TriCities, PC, to learn more.