Teeth Sensitivity

Teeth sensitivity can mean significant pain and it often impacts daily activities, such as eating, drinking, and brushing your teeth. It can also lead to painful dentist office visits and procedures.

In healthy teeth, porous tissue called dentin is protected by your gums and by your teeth's hard enamel outer layer. However, dentin can become exposed due to receding gums, fractured or chipped teeth, or erosion. Microscopic holes in the dentin, called tubules, connect to the nerve, triggering pain when irritated by certain foods and beverages.

Two recognized leading causes of teeth sensitivity are enamel loss and gingival recession.1 For example:

• Brushing Too Hard: Brushing too hard or using a hard-bristled toothbrush can cause gum recession and root exposure over time.
• Acidic Foods: Eating acidic foods and beverages on a regular basis can cause enamel to erode, increasing the likelihood of sensitivity.

To reduce teeth sensitivity and enamel loss, your dental professional may recommend you use a soft-bristle toothbrush or a desensitizing toothpaste.

• Crest Pro-Health Sensitive plus Enamel Shield Toothpaste: smoother than the original Pro-Health paste, Sensitive plus Enamel Shield contains the clinically proven active ingredient stannous fluoride to protect teeth from sensitivity and to care for your healthy teeth and gums. Crest Pro-Health Sensitive plus Enamel Shield Toothpaste is triclosan free.
• Oral-B Glide Pro-Health Floss for Sensitive Gums): the softest Oral-B Glide floss is 2X softer versus Glide Original and is designed to make flossing more comfortable for even the most sensitive gums.
• Oral-B CrossAction Gentle Clean Toothbrush: combines extra soft CrissCross and Power Tip bristles to remove up to 90 percent of plaque from hard to reach areas2 while still being gentle on gums.

Sensitive toothpastes work by either occluding exposed dentinal tubules (Crest Pro-Health Sensitive + Enamel Shield Toothpaste) or by desensitizing the nerve endings in the dentinal tubules with potassium ions. Most sensitivity toothpastes, including the leading sensitivity brand, work by numbing the nerve inside your tooth. Crest Pro-Health Sensitive and Enamel Shield works differently. It contains the clinically proven active ingredient stannous fluoride, which helps block the tubule openings to keep the external triggers such as heat and cold from ever reaching and stimulating the nerve inside the tooth. Stannous fluoride also binds to enamel to create a micro-thin shield, strengthening the tooth.

Crest Pro-Health Sensitive plus Enamel Shield protects sensitive teeth and provides comprehensive oral health protection for your teeth and gums. Individuals struggling with sensitivity no longer have to spend their time and money using more than one toothpaste to get all the protection they want for a healthy mouth. They no longer need to make that trade-off because Crest Pro-Health is the only leading toothpaste that protects against all these areas dentists check most: cavities, gingivitis, plaque, tartar, sensitivity, whitening, and fresh breath—all in one tube. Crest Pro-Health Sensitive plus Enamel Shield Toothpaste are triclosan free.

Sources:

1. J Am Dent Assoc. 2003 Feb;134(2):220-5.
2. Based on a single-use brushing study.