Teeth Grinding
	Early Childhood Tooth Decay
	The Stages of Tooth Decay
	Gum Disease
	Bad Breath
	Snoring

Tooth decay is a disease that attacks the dental hard tissues and spreads into the interior of the tooth to form a cavity and cause localized, progressive destruction of the enamel, dentin and dental pulp.

The chief cause of tooth decay is poor dental hygiene and a diet that is high in sugars. After each meal, food debris clings to the teeth. If it is not brushed away, the bacteria in the mouth transforms the sugars in the food debris into acids that attack the enamel and eventually enter the dentin and the dental pulp. The following illustrations show the stages of tooth decay:

Healthy tooth.	Early stage of tooth decay. Only the top level of the enamel is affected. During this stage, the patient feels no pain. This is the best time to treat a cavity.
When decay reaches the dentin (shown in light yellow), the tooth becomes sensitive to hot and cold. The patient may feel intermittent pain. At this stage it is still early enough to treat the problem with a restoration.	When the decay attacks the dental pulp (in pink), the pain becomes severe and persistent. The patient has no choice but to have major restorative work and a root canal treatment.
If the infection (in brown) spreads to the entire dental pulp, the patient may experience an abscess and will have to take antibiotics before the dentist can treat the problem. As in the previous stage, the patient will need major restorative work and a root canal treatment.