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I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. I pride myself on my dental hygine, due to my family having poor dental health. I floss, rinse w

I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. I pride myself on my dental hygine, due to my family having poor dental health. I floss, rinse with mouthwash, followed by brushing my teeth with an electric toothbrush (with toothpaste!) I do this twice a day without fail. Further, I aim to have a reduced sugar and acidic diet, and I only drink water. I had to get a filling this year for a cavity, aged 25. My dental hygenist implied that I wasn't taking care with my teeth, but I think that isn't the case. My partner eats the same, but only brushes her teeth once a day. And she has yet to have anything close to resembling a cavity.

dennis_jeeves1 4y ago
>I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. Nope. Common food habit that's passed off as genetics: yes.
- was_a_dev 4y ago
  > Common food habbit And those would be?
  - dennis_jeeves1 4y ago
    >> Common food habbit >And those would be? Generally starches and 'junk food'. ( interestingly, anecdotally I don't think sugar in moderate quantities is a problem). Strict vegans are almost always predisposed to having lots of cavities and brittle bones. Also see my other response regarding fetal health etc. Another topic for you to consider if you are thinking along lines of genetics: evolutionary biology.
noduerme 4y ago
I think it's a combination of your flora and genetics. My father's best friend was also his (our) dentist and used to refer to my dad's and grandpa's teeth as "the yellow rocks". Men in my family piss stones more than any people I've ever encountered, to the degree that our family folklore includes a highly effective means of dealing with them involving vast amounts of Guinness and tying your genitalia with string. But somehow, our teeth seem to be practically immune to getting cavities. The men in my family are also all strangely averse to sweetened drinks, sugar, candies, desserts, etc; we tend toward the salt, tobacco and whiskey flavor profile. So maybe that kills some of the destructive flora. My mom has 16 fillings; her parents and brother all ended up with false teeth by their 40s. None of my 3 brothers by my father have cavities. It's definitely something that runs on the male lineage, for us at least.
fernandotakai 4y ago
> I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. same! i have no cavities at all. my wife, who has eats the same diet as myself and brushes her teeth the same amount i do, has cavities all the time!
- dennis_jeeves1 4y ago
  >same! i have no cavities at all. my wife, who has eats the same diet as myself and brushes her teeth the same amount i do, has cavities all the time! You have to account for multiple things including, the health of parents, fetal health nutrition during childhood etc.
TecoAndJix 4y ago
My dentist, who my family and I have seen my entire life, believed the “cavity factor” was how much fluoride you got as a kid. Now that we are on well water I supplement my children’s water with fluoride drops.
Bayart 4y ago
> I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. There very much is. I've got decent dental hygiene but at 32 virtually no intact tooth and 7 implants. All my family on my mother's side is the same. The general opinion of the dentists I've seen is that I've just inherited fragile enamel.
twixfel 4y ago
Genetics has to play a role. I'm 30 and I've never had a single cavity. I was a slob for the first ~18 years of my life and barely brushed at all because I knew I didn't really need to. Now I brush once a day, but never before bed, only before leaving the house. I've flossed at most ten times in my life and pay no particular heed to my diet (although I am not unhealthy or overweight). Meanwhile my sisters and parents are far more attentive and all of them have had multiple cavities. We all go to the same dentist, and have done for 30+ years.

dennis_jeeves1 4y ago

>I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. Nope. Common food habit that's passed off as genetics: yes.

was_a_dev 4y ago
> Common food habbit And those would be?
- dennis_jeeves1 4y ago
  >> Common food habbit >And those would be? Generally starches and 'junk food'. ( interestingly, anecdotally I don't think sugar in moderate quantities is a problem). Strict vegans are almost always predisposed to having lots of cavities and brittle bones. Also see my other response regarding fetal health etc. Another topic for you to consider if you are thinking along lines of genetics: evolutionary biology.

noduerme 4y ago

I think it's a combination of your flora and genetics. My father's best friend was also his (our) dentist and used to refer to my dad's and grandpa's teeth as "the yellow rocks". Men in my family piss stones more than any people I've ever encountered, to the degree that our family folklore includes a highly effective means of dealing with them involving vast amounts of Guinness and tying your genitalia with string. But somehow, our teeth seem to be practically immune to getting cavities. The men in my family are also all strangely averse to sweetened drinks, sugar, candies, desserts, etc; we tend toward the salt, tobacco and whiskey flavor profile. So maybe that kills some of the destructive flora. My mom has 16 fillings; her parents and brother all ended up with false teeth by their 40s. None of my 3 brothers by my father have cavities. It's definitely something that runs on the male lineage, for us at least.

fernandotakai 4y ago

> I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. same! i have no cavities at all. my wife, who has eats the same diet as myself and brushes her teeth the same amount i do, has cavities all the time!

dennis_jeeves1 4y ago
>same! i have no cavities at all. my wife, who has eats the same diet as myself and brushes her teeth the same amount i do, has cavities all the time! You have to account for multiple things including, the health of parents, fetal health nutrition during childhood etc.

TecoAndJix 4y ago

My dentist, who my family and I have seen my entire life, believed the “cavity factor” was how much fluoride you got as a kid. Now that we are on well water I supplement my children’s water with fluoride drops.

Bayart 4y ago

> I want to know if there's any genetics involved with cavities. There very much is. I've got decent dental hygiene but at 32 virtually no intact tooth and 7 implants. All my family on my mother's side is the same. The general opinion of the dentists I've seen is that I've just inherited fragile enamel.

twixfel 4y ago

Genetics has to play a role. I'm 30 and I've never had a single cavity. I was a slob for the first ~18 years of my life and barely brushed at all because I knew I didn't really need to. Now I brush once a day, but never before bed, only before leaving the house. I've flossed at most ten times in my life and pay no particular heed to my diet (although I am not unhealthy or overweight). Meanwhile my sisters and parents are far more attentive and all of them have had multiple cavities. We all go to the same dentist, and have done for 30+ years.