Asthma Inhalers Central

While searching the Net for more knowledge about asthma inhalers, I came across a couple of articles positing that inhalers and other asthma drugs can cause tooth erosion. Here’s an excerpt from this article:

Some 20 million Americans suffer from asthma, including 6.3 million children, and the various drugs they take — inhalers, syrups and often sugar-coated steroids — are typically taken repeatedly throughout the day. These medications can leave asthmatics with higher levels of enamel erosion and tooth decay, according to recent studies.

From my own experience, I have had relatively well-maintained teeth since childhood, despite using inhalers at least once a day (as of this writing). Though of course, my asthma left me midway through my childhood, only to resurface in college.

Here’s more from the same article:

“The nature of inhaled drugs means a natural side effect is to dry the mouth out,” said Dr. Kenneth Burrell, senior director on the Council of Scientific Affairs for the ADA. “Lots of inhalants are very acidic, with low pHs way below what will dissolve enamel.”

Hm, described that way, that’s not a very comforting thought. Anyway, if you’re a user of inhalers (or have asthmatic kids), just place more attention on oral hygiene. As the advice of CYH goes:

The tooth problems can be reduced if children rinse their mouths with water after using a puffer and if they clean their teeth at least twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste. Fluoride protects the surface of the teeth.

If you’re interested, iVillage has a question posed by concerned parent of a boy who uses an inhaler and suffers from tooth decay, and the doctor’s answer.