Fast Facts: Saliva and Your Mouth

Saliva is the ever-present substance in your mouth that helps break down food. But what other purpose does it serve?

What purpose does your saliva serve?

Here are some facts that you might not know about saliva.

Saliva is a watery substance found in the mouths of animals and humans. It is secreted by the salivary gland. The human saliva is 99.5% water, while the other 0.5% is made up of electrolytes, mucus, glycoproteins, enzymes, antibacterial, and bacteria compounds like lysozyme.

Main function. The main function of saliva is to help food pass easily from the mouth into the esophagus. It also breaks down starch into simpler sugars like maltose to be further broken down in the small intestine.

Saliva helps prevent bad breath. Saliva helps in digestion but it also helps in keeping teeth free from cavities. It also helps keep your mouth moist and fights germs that can cause bad breath.

Cavity fighter. Another role played by Saliva is protecting the teeth from cavities. One of its key components, salivary mucins, actively protects teeth from damage by the bacterium Streptococcus mutans, gram-postivive cocci shaped bacteria that contribute to cavities.

The Streptococcus mutans causes tooth decay by attaching itself to teeth by forming a biofilm from sticky polymers it produces. Organic acid byproducts if its metabolism attack the tooth enamel, causing cavities.

Researchers found that salivary mucins do not kill the Streptococcus mutans, instead they keep the bacteria suspended in a liquid medium and this reduces the bacteria’s ability to form biofilms on teeth.

“This is particularly significant for S. mutans because it only causes cavities when attached, or in a biofilm on the tooth’s surface”, Erica Shapio Frenkel explains,first author from Harvard University.

Here are some tips keep the salivary glands pumping:

Chew sugar-free gum. Chewing stimulates the glands to produce saliva. It has to be sugar-free because excess sugar promotes cavities.

Eating fibrous food such as apples, carrots and celery. They sweep bacteria and plaque off teeth, according to Dr. Ward Massey, an assistant professor at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine.