Can You Heal Cavity At Home? | Colgate® (2024)

FAQs

Can You Heal Cavity At Home? | Colgate®? ›

The short answer? No. Although you can take steps to halt the decay process at home, your dentist needs to treat existing cavities. In the earliest stages of tooth decay, it's possible to remineralize the tooth enamel and prevent a cavity.

However, unless a cavity is in the beginning stages of formation, it cannot heal naturally, especially for one that has broken through the dentin. When you start feeling pain in the localized tooth, it's a sign that the damage is too significant, and you should see a dentist for professional cavity treatment.

Unfortunately, cavities cannot be reversed at home and must be treated by a dentist. This is because cavities are permanent damage to the tooth that can only be repaired with professional dental care. If you think you have a cavity, the best thing to do is to make an appointment with your dentist as soon as possible.

Reaching the Pulp: Irreversible Damage

Unfortunately, once the pulp is infected, it is generally too late to reverse the cavity through natural means alone.

The only time in which cavities can be reversed is in the early stages of demineralization. Dedicated oral hygiene is critical to restoring lost minerals in your teeth and stopping decay from progressing. Unfortunately, many do not catch cavities at this stage, and they pass the point of no return.

Enamel can repair itself by using minerals from saliva, and fluoride from toothpaste or other sources. But if the tooth decay process continues, more minerals are lost. Over time, the enamel is weakened and destroyed, forming a cavity. A cavity is permanent damage that a dentist has to repair with a filling.

No, cavities require professional attention to repair and treat the affected tooth. Left untreated, cavities can lead to more serious complications and infection and may require a root canal or tooth extraction.

As a result, there is no natural way to remove them at home. Only a dentist can fix a cavity by filling it in. That said, home care can prevent cavities. Food and bacteria buildup form a sticky film on the teeth's surface and along the gumline.

If a cavity is very small, and it hasn't spread beyond your enamel yet, then you may be able to remineralize your tooth with fluoride treatments and improved oral hygiene. Keep in mind, though — if the cavity spreads to your dentin, you'll need a filling, crown or other dental restoration to fix it.

Temporary at-home tooth filling kits can be used, but this doesn't mean that they should. Even in the cases where you do use them, they will not fix your problem, and you will still need to make an appointment with your dentist. The only “fix” you can get if you have a hole in your tooth is professional treatment.

At what point is a cavity irreversible? ›

Once decay reaches the dentin the disease process is virtually irreversible. The diseased portion of the tooth needs to be removed and a restoration such as a filling or crown will be placed. If the decay goes all the way into the nerves and blood vessels of the pulp chamber the tooth will die.

How Long Can You Delay Treatment on a Cavity Still in the Enamel? In some cases, early signs of tooth erosion in the enamel can be successfully treated with fluoride toothpaste or surface filling materials. But once an actual cavity forms, dentists usually recommend treating it within a year.

Late Stages of a Cavity

If a cavity goes untreated for a year or more, the small hole can become a serious problem. Once the bacteria eats through the tough tooth enamel, it can invade the softer structures of the teeth, like the tooth pulp and tooth root.

Brushing is essential to preventing your cavity from worsening. Brushing will also help prevent the formation of even more cavities. Zero in on the cavity as you brush to eliminate any remaining food particles from your snack or meal. This thorough brushing can help hinder the cavity's progression.

How Many Cavities is Too Many? A few cavities may be normal due to sugary diets and oral hygiene, but more than 3 or 4 may indicate a need for better dental care and diet changes.

So, in terms of can a dead tooth fall out on its own, we now know that, yes, it can indeed. If you are worried about a dead tooth, or any other dental issues, be sure to consult your dentist as they can treat a number of dental ailments and can offer help and advice.

But if the cavity has grown and has been there for a while, the short answer is you really can't make it go away. Pain from a cavity can fade, which can make us believe the cavity itself has gone away on its own but in reality, this is because the tooth decay has caused nerve damage.

Generally speaking, small cavities can go without treatment for a few months or longer before becoming painful or causing other health problems. However, bigger cavities will require immediate attention from your dentist to prevent further damage.

The answer is simple: as early as possible! If you see white spots on your teeth, you are probably looking at the earliest stages of tooth decay. At this point, the cavity can be reversed by building up the minerals in the enamel with fluoride toothpaste and/or fluoride treatments from your dentist.

Stage 1 Early Cavity – White Spots on Teeth

As tooth damage begins, white spots on teeth are an early sign of stage 1 in the cavity forming process. These dots are under your protective enamel layer yet easily visible from the outside. The main reason this happens is demineralization.