Ice Cravings – A Sign of Something Worse?

We all know someone who asks for extra ice just so they can chew on it. And we’ve probably all heard that chewing ice is not healthy for your teeth. So what’s the truth? Is it best to put a stop to ice chewing? Absolutely, and for more reasons than most people are aware of. Dr. Fili wants all Dubuque residents to know why chewing ice is a bad habit, so please read on for the facts!

Why should I stop chewing ice?

Ice is hard. So hard, in fact, that pitting it against your teeth regularly will most certainly result in damage to your enamel. If you have pagophagia (the fancy name for ice cravings), it’s likely that Dr. Fili will need to perform enamel restoration treatments, which are pricey and can be quite uncomfortable.

However, that is not the most pressing reason to be aware of an ice chewing habit. Recent research indicates that pagophagia may actually be a sign of anemia (a lack of iron in the blood), which can lead to serious health complications if left untreated. Scientists aren’t sure exactly why the link exists, but they suspect it may be due to the oral inflammation caused by anemia. Such inflammation could conceivably spark an urge to seek relief in the form of ice.

Is ice chewing really a ‘thing’?

It definitely is. Hardcore ice enthusiasts keep ice by their side all day long, and may even put away multiple pounds of the stuff each day. If you still think this is doubtful, check it out online and you will find that there is an entire community of ice lovers and ice-chewing websites.

Why am I having ice cravings?

With a simple blood test, your doctor can tell you if you are an anemic ice chewer seeking the soothing cold of a good ice cube. And if you are, don’t panic! Anemia is easily treatable with daily iron supplements.

If you have questions, contact us at Dubuque Periodontics anytime! And remember to order that drink WITHOUT ice next time!

Sources

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/22/health/22real.html?_r=1&ref=health



from Dubuque Periodontics, P.C. http://dubuqueperiodontics.com/ice-cravings-sign-something-worse/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Going for the Gold?

Image
On the left is the older allow, on the right the new one that my lab has chosen to use The cost of a penny weight of pure gold is currently $79.53. The cost of a penny weight of pure palladium is $130.6. It used to be that palladium was added instead of gold to the precious metals often used for pfms, but now laboratories are finding that palladium is no longer affordable. The lab that I am using has just changed the formulation of the metal it's using to one that has more gold than palladium. I really do not mind, but metals with more gold are softer and often easier for a dentist to accidentally polish off delicate margins. It is important when polishing "higher gold" formulations to exert less hand pressure when performing the final polishing of the crown's margins. Other wise there should be no problem with this change. Traditionally labs have chosen alloys with higher gold percentages for optimal esthetics, since alloys with higher concentrations of ...
Read more

Tongue Ties: What Parents Need to Know

Image
For a long time, people just didn’t seem to know much about tongue ties. In the early years of my practice, few of my patients had ever heard of a tongue tie. When I pointed out that they or their children might be tongue tied, I was often the very first practitioner who’d mentioned it to them. When I told them that a tongue tie might actually be the root cause of their oral myofunctional issues, or even their sleep apnea , I’m sure that some of them thought I was crazy. But in the last few years, things have changed so much! Initially, there was a small increase in the number of patients who were contacting me specifically about tongue ties. Dentists and orthodontists also began reaching out more frequently to discuss the application of myofunctional therapy exercises to tongue tie treatment. But in the last year or so, that little bit of interest has become a surge of awareness. Tongue ties and their effects on health and craniofacial development are finally becoming mainstream....
Read more

Tonsil Stones: Symptoms, Causes, and How to Remove

Image
Pictures Causes Symptoms Diagnosis How to remove Treatment Prevention Complications FAQs What are tonsil stones? Tonsil stones (also called tonsil calculi or tonsilloliths) are yellowish or white calcifications that develop on the tonsils. Tonsils are a type of lymph node that line the back of the throat.  These stones are made of hardened, impacted biofilm that builds up in the crypts (crevices) of your tonsils. They range in size between a small rice grain to as large as a grape . Generally, tonsil stones develop on the palatine tonsils (on the sides of the back of your throat).  Tonsil stones may be present in 5-6% of adult dental patients on average. Tonsil stones are twice as common in men than women, more common after the age of 40, and less frequent in black individuals than those of other ethnicities. A mild case of tonsil stones may go unnoticed. However, once they make it feel like you constantly have to swallow or cause nasty halitosis ( bad brea...
Read more