Don’t wait for pain. Because then you already may be too late.
Tooth cavities or dental caries as they are know are one of the major causes of dental pain and loss of teeth. Its a disease widely prevalent in every country, every culture and all age groups. Multiple factors can predispose a person to be affected by it including crooked teeth, an improper fit of the upper and lower teeth, sugar rich diet, genetics and other existing debilitating diseases. But the major cause is inadequate hygiene.
The bacteria causing dental cavities are really only interested in the food that you chew and that gets left behind on the teeth, and are not interested in the teeth themselves. When these bacteriae feast on the food residues, the by-product is acid. This acid is what attacks the tooth structure causing cavities.
Hence, keeping your teeth clean and devoid of any food residue will keep the bacterial activity at the minimum, resultantly decreasing the probability of formation of cavities.
For the most part, its an irreversible affliction of the tooth. Once the tooth structure is lost to decay, its lost forever. Advancements in dentistry have introduced materials that can be used to fill these cavities and replace missing tooth structure depending on the extent of the damage.
Unfortunately a lot of people neglect the initial symptoms of the damage until they experience pain. At this point it is highly likely that the cavity has extended deep enough to reach the nerves and blood vessels inside the tooth. Which also means that the tooth cannot be treated by just filling the cavity but a more invasive treatment like root canal treatment or even extraction could be the only way to alleviate the pain.
All this can be avoided by early detection and various preventive modalities available. Visit your dental practitioners to find out more about preventive modalities like fissure sealants and fluoride applications.
And as I said, don’t wait for pain, because then you already may be too late.