Cavities and such..

uhhh so after the dentist today...I have 8 cavities and 2 root canals.  She told me the enamel on my teeth is gone and they are slowly deteriorating and have holes in them!  I used to purge every once in a while, but no longer do that.  I have never had this bad of teeth before and they hurt! Does anyone have any recommmendations on what to do to get stronger teeth and hopefully get no more cavities in the future? 

It never hurts to get a second opinion, even for dental work.  And you may want to ask the dentist what it is that you should do to improve your teeth.  I've heard that once the enamel is gone that there is nothing you can do to get it back but I don't know if this is true.

Brush your teeth, floss daily.... avoid drinking or eating too many sugary foods.  You could ask your dentist if there are any products around that rebuild enamel. There's a toothpaste produced by 'Arm and Hammer' called 'Enamel Care' for example. It's intended to help sensitive teeth and coats the teeth with liquid calcium. 

I totally agree about the 2nd opinion. Get one.

Rinse with Listerine at least once a day, maybe twice.

Floss, floss, floss. Only floss the teeth you want to keep

Spend the $$$ and get a prophylactic cleaning every 6 months.

Sensodyne Pro Enamel !

Do you smoke by any chance?

Thnk you!  I have gotten the toothpaste and my dentist recommended a mouthwash.  I do smoke, does that contribute to it in any way?

I don't think that smoking is good for your teeth, when you have enamel, it stains the enamel but that can be somewhat cleaned.  Without enamel I imagine that it stains the tooth itself since they're so porus.

I think there's a sealant that they may be able to apply to the molars to keep them protected, but you don't want to do that to the teeth you can see all the time as it probably looks a bit funny.

You are probably going to have to brush everytime you eat even a snack to keep those teeth clean.

I have a boatload of kids recently at the dentist, and so I ask the question (and offer the warning): Do you drink a lot of diet soda? Beyond the sugar, which can cause the cavities, acid wear from any kind of soda (including diet) consumption (or excessive orange juice, lemonade, etc.) can erode enamel.

My kindergartner reminded us of his class experiment where they used a teeth provided by a local dentist and left them (for half the school year) in glasses of clear soda, water, and cola. The tooth in the clear soda first fell apart and then dissolved completely; the tooth in the cola "turned black" and remained as a stump of its previous "self"; and the "water-tooth" remained unchanged.

Tooth-whitening products (especially those that contain peroxide), when used more often than instructions direct, can also affect the enamel of the teeth and tooth sensitivity.

I used to purge as well and my mom is a dental hygienist and she recommended both Sensodyne Pro Enamel and Colgate Prevident 5000 (you might have to ask the dentist about the second one because i think it's actually perscription... it has a lot of flouride in it :)  )

When I was a smoker I aquired many many cavities!  It was horrific and my dentist was always mad because I smoked and he told me all the damage I was doing to me teeth by doing so.  I quit smoking 5 years and 4 months ago and I have not had ONE single cavity since then.  I would suggest to do a rinse with water after you smoke each cigarette, or quit smoking all together.

Good luck!