Poor oral health could be harming the chances of elite athletes in competition, it has been warned, after experts found sugary sports drinks cause damage to the teeth of one in five
Simple measures such as encouraging better brushing and flossing could provide the same marginal performance gains as expensive physical therapies
Sports drinks and a high carb diet could actually be holding back elite athletes in competition, it has been suggested, as poor oral health affects their performance.
Research has found that almost one in five athletes have suffered in competition because of poor oral health and almost half have not been to the dentist in the past year.
Yet good brushing, flossing and even high fluoride mouthwashes can counter the effects of sugary sports drinks and improve performance, University College London experts said.
A third of the medical visits during the London Olympics was for dental treatment and demand has increased at competitions since, they said.
In a consensus statement published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the authors call for action to tackle poor oral health among athletes.
Athletes with poor dental health are likely to suffer pain, difficulties sleeping and eating, general inflammation, a dent to their confidence and may be generally out of sorts, all of which could be detrimental to their performance, they suggest.
They said that simple measures such as encouraging better brushing and flossing could provide the same marginal performance gains as expensive physical therapies.
The statement came out of the Oral Health and Performance in Sport collaboration led by Professor Ian Needleman of the UCL Eastman Dental Institute and Professor Fares Haddad of the Institute of Sport Exercise and Health (ISEH).
A UCL survey at the London 2012 Olympic Games found that 18 per cent of athletes said that their oral health had a negative impact on their performance and 46.5 per cent had not been to the dentist in the past year.
Professor Needleman said: “Oral health could be an easy win for athletes, as the oral conditions that can affect performance are all easily preventable.
“Professional athletes and their teams spend a lot of time and money on ways to marginally improving performance, as this can make all the difference in elite sports.
"Simple strategies to prevent oral health problems can offer marginal performance gains that require little to no additional time or money. Things like better tooth brushing techniques and higher fluoride toothpastes could prevent the toothache and associated sleeping and training difficulties that can make the crucial difference between gold and silver.”
The intense dietary and training pressures on athletes could put them at high risk of oral health problems for many reasons. Saliva helps to protect teeth from decay and erosion, so dehydration and drying of the mouth could increase the risk of oral health problems, they said.
The amount of energy that athletes need for training often means they have high-carbohydrate diets and regularly use sugary, acidic energy drinks that may contribute to decay and erosion in athletes’ teeth.
Prof Needleman added: “We do not want to demonise energy drinks and are not saying that athletes shouldn’t be using them.
“However, people should be aware of the risks to oral health and can take simple measures to mitigate these. For example, water or hypotonic drinks are likely to be more suitable for simple hydration, and spit don’t rinse after tooth brushing. For sports where athletes need a lot of energy drinks, high fluoride toothpastes and mouthrinses should be seriously considered.”
Dr Mike Loosemoore, Lead Consultant in Sport and Exercise Medicine at the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health, said: “I think this is an important consensus statement. My experience of instituting a programme of improving oral health in elite sportsman has had a very positive effect.”
The team found 39 studies on elite or professional sports men and women, showed that tooth decay affected up to three quarters of athletes; moderate to severe gum disease up to 15 per cent; enamel erosion between one third and eight in ten; and infected or impacted molars affected between one in 20 and one in three.
Athletes from rich countries were no less likely to be affected than those from poor countries, the data showed. And, overall, the dental health of athletes was on a par with that of non-athletes living in deprived communities.
Sportsmen and women participating in disciplines were aesthetics and weight are important such as boxing, horse riding and gymnastics are also prone to eating disorders which are known to affect oral health.
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/11158740/Why-sugary-sports-drinks-may-be-slowing-athletes-down.html
Visit us: http://affinitydentalfresno.net/
from Affinity Dental Fresno http://affinitydental.livejournal.com/28447.html
Sports drinks and a high carb diet could actually be holding back elite athletes in competition, it has been suggested, as poor oral health affects their performance.
Research has found that almost one in five athletes have suffered in competition because of poor oral health and almost half have not been to the dentist in the past year.
Yet good brushing, flossing and even high fluoride mouthwashes can counter the effects of sugary sports drinks and improve performance, University College London experts said.
A third of the medical visits during the London Olympics was for dental treatment and demand has increased at competitions since, they said.
In a consensus statement published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the authors call for action to tackle poor oral health among athletes.
Athletes with poor dental health are likely to suffer pain, difficulties sleeping and eating, general inflammation, a dent to their confidence and may be generally out of sorts, all of which could be detrimental to their performance, they suggest.
They said that simple measures such as encouraging better brushing and flossing could provide the same marginal performance gains as expensive physical therapies.
The statement came out of the Oral Health and Performance in Sport collaboration led by Professor Ian Needleman of the UCL Eastman Dental Institute and Professor Fares Haddad of the Institute of Sport Exercise and Health (ISEH).
A UCL survey at the London 2012 Olympic Games found that 18 per cent of athletes said that their oral health had a negative impact on their performance and 46.5 per cent had not been to the dentist in the past year.
Professor Needleman said: “Oral health could be an easy win for athletes, as the oral conditions that can affect performance are all easily preventable.
“Professional athletes and their teams spend a lot of time and money on ways to marginally improving performance, as this can make all the difference in elite sports.
"Simple strategies to prevent oral health problems can offer marginal performance gains that require little to no additional time or money. Things like better tooth brushing techniques and higher fluoride toothpastes could prevent the toothache and associated sleeping and training difficulties that can make the crucial difference between gold and silver.”
The intense dietary and training pressures on athletes could put them at high risk of oral health problems for many reasons. Saliva helps to protect teeth from decay and erosion, so dehydration and drying of the mouth could increase the risk of oral health problems, they said.
The amount of energy that athletes need for training often means they have high-carbohydrate diets and regularly use sugary, acidic energy drinks that may contribute to decay and erosion in athletes’ teeth.
Prof Needleman added: “We do not want to demonise energy drinks and are not saying that athletes shouldn’t be using them.
“However, people should be aware of the risks to oral health and can take simple measures to mitigate these. For example, water or hypotonic drinks are likely to be more suitable for simple hydration, and spit don’t rinse after tooth brushing. For sports where athletes need a lot of energy drinks, high fluoride toothpastes and mouthrinses should be seriously considered.”
Dr Mike Loosemoore, Lead Consultant in Sport and Exercise Medicine at the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health, said: “I think this is an important consensus statement. My experience of instituting a programme of improving oral health in elite sportsman has had a very positive effect.”
The team found 39 studies on elite or professional sports men and women, showed that tooth decay affected up to three quarters of athletes; moderate to severe gum disease up to 15 per cent; enamel erosion between one third and eight in ten; and infected or impacted molars affected between one in 20 and one in three.
Athletes from rich countries were no less likely to be affected than those from poor countries, the data showed. And, overall, the dental health of athletes was on a par with that of non-athletes living in deprived communities.
Sportsmen and women participating in disciplines were aesthetics and weight are important such as boxing, horse riding and gymnastics are also prone to eating disorders which are known to affect oral health.
Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/11158740/Why-sugary-sports-drinks-may-be-slowing-athletes-down.html
Visit us: http://affinitydentalfresno.net/
from Affinity Dental Fresno http://affinitydental.livejournal.com/28447.html
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