At New Generation Dentistry in Mission Viejo, we’re just as dedicated to keeping the planet green as we are to keeping your teeth clean! Check out our favorite ways to make tooth-friendly eating habits Earth-friendly as well!

Straws

Keep your teeth white and shiny by using straws whenever you drink coffee, juice, or tea. These pigmented liquids could easily stain your teeth. Coffee and tea contain tannins, which are organic substances that stick to the enamel. Juices have sugar and acidic content that could make teeth more vulnerable to discoloration from bright colors.

If you need a straw, there are tons of environmentally-friendly options. Every effort to stop contributing to plastic waste counts. You can get reusable metal, glass, or silicone straws depending on your preference. If you don’t want to bother with the hassle of cleaning straws, lots of retail stores sell biodegradable paper straws. For example, the Target on Alicia Parkway in Mission Viejo is usually well stocked with an array of options!

Compost

There are tons of great, natural ways to keep your teeth bright and healthy just by changing your diet. Foods like apples, cheeses, leafy greens, and carrots are great for your teeth because they have vitamins and minerals that keep your teeth strong. Raw vegetables can also clean the surface of your teeth as you eat and stimulate saliva to get rid of harmful plaque. For those of you who are incorporating these items into their diets, we applaud you!

Instead of tossing your leftover produce into the trash, you can create a compost pile next time. This is a way to naturally recycle decomposed or rotting materials. Here’s what you’ll need:

1. Brown materials (dead leaves, sticks, newspaper, straw)
2. Garden soil
3. Green materials (produce leftovers or waste, grass clippings)

Choose an area in your backyard that is dry and shady. Place the brown materials down and cover with soil. Then, add your green materials and cover that with soil as well. Finally, pat it down and moisten with water. You can also create compost in a ceramic box with worms if you don’t have a backyard.

Once you have nutrient-rich compost, you can even start growing your own herbs and plants. Keep Mission Viejo clean by opting to compost instead of dumping in landfills. Last year, the city gave out soil to compost for Earth Day and hosted a free composting workshop. Stay on the lookout for opportunities this year, too!

Gum

Mission Viejo has some of the best restaurants in Orange County – who could resist a plate of delicious, garlic-y pasta at the local Italian ristorante? On the other hand, nobody wants to smell like vampire repellent after dinner, but think twice before you pop a piece of gum to freshen your breath.

A lot of gums are loaded with sugar, which can cause cavities. Sugar-free chewing gum can help produce saliva to flush out plaque and food debris; however, its synthetic base is terrible for the environment.

Conventional gum is made of synthetic plastics that are difficult to clean and recycle. It accounts for 250,000 tons of waste a year, not counting the gum that litters streets and sidewalks. When gum gets washed into the ocean, it’s ingested by fish and reintroduced to our food chain.

Replace that mint-flavored gum with actual mint! Cardamom pods, fennel seeds, and cloves are herbs that can freshen your breath and promote saliva production. They are naturally sweet, minty, and full of essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Best of all, they’re completely biodegradable, unlike traditional chewing gum.

You can pick up these products at the Trader Joe’s down Santa Margarita Parkway if you’re around our dental office in Mission Viejo. They’re also available online and at most farmers markets in Irvine and Laguna Niguel.

We hope you have a chance to try out these sustainable, tooth-friendly tips! At New Generation Dentistry, our Mission Viejo dentists are dedicated to providing quality dental care and educating patients about how they can maintain healthy teeth. If you’re interested in going green, check out our eco-friendly oral care guide to learn more about all the little ways you can save our planet with your dental routine.