Perhaps some of you may recall Bossy has a wee obsession with lemons. Bossy loves lemon in her salad dressing, she loves lemon in her sauces, and she loves lemon rind in her everything else.
When not enjoying lemons, Bossy is fond of lemon slices in her drinking water:
In fact, Bossy will confess she had a difficult time meeting her daily water requirement in her regime until she discovered how much she enjoyed water with lemon wedges.
That is until the other day.
The other day Bossy went to her dentist. And minutes from a clean getaway, Bossy mentioned to her dentist that she’s become quite the lemon water addict, and Bossy’s dentist said sister mercy stop right now are you insane you will lose your teeth.
As it turns out, the acidity of lemons is one of the worst things you can do to the enamel of your teeth shy of a heroin addiction and Bossy just added the part about the heroin addiction, because lying helps to underline the seriousness of lemons.
And counter to what seems intuitive, brushing your teeth after consuming lemon juice doesn’t help, but rather harms, because the acidity from the lemon softens the teeth, and then the brushing of these newly softened teeth advances the enamel deterioration.
Guess what else doesn’t do the teeth any favors?
We all know things like coffee, tea, and red wine stain teeth, but what you may not know is how much more rapidly the staining occurs if you, in a totally random example, consume lemon water at the same time you drink red wine in order to keep yourself hydrated, not that Bossy knows anyone who practices this parlor trick, Bossy and Bossy’s friend Martha we’re looking at you.
So much for trying to be healthy. And sober.
bossy's friend martha says
June 17, 2010 at 7:21 amBoooo!!! I choose to believe otherwise. I don’t want to hear another word of this Ms Bossy.
juliejpr says
June 17, 2010 at 8:02 amuse a straw?
Naomi says
June 17, 2010 at 8:06 amTry cucumber in the water instead. Also strangely refreshing, and much less stressful for the teeth!
Chesapeake Bay Woman says
June 17, 2010 at 8:30 amThis proves once and for all that dentists are the spawn of Satan.
Gigi says
June 17, 2010 at 8:53 am*cries*
Dawn in Austin says
June 17, 2010 at 9:28 amTo stay hydrated whilst drinking my red wine, sometimes I put an ice cube in it.
GrandeMocha says
June 17, 2010 at 9:53 amSo don’t brush your teeth until how long after you drink lemon water?
GrandeMocha says
June 17, 2010 at 9:55 amPick which is worse for you, not drinking enough water or drinking lemon water.
tj says
June 17, 2010 at 9:58 am…I’ve heard this before too but I also heard that if you drink from a straw then it doesn’t hurt your teeth.
…I dunno ’bout drinking wine from a straw. Seems to me if you do that for a while then you’d be like, “teeth?”…”what teeth?”…”I have teeth?!”…lol ;o)
…Blessin’s… :o)
corrie says
June 17, 2010 at 10:06 amMore bad news everyday! It just doesn’t end!
…. …..
I guess I will try the cucumber water .
Claire says
June 17, 2010 at 10:08 amMy family has recently had a lemon intervention for me, and now I hear it from you! It is a sad life where I have to view lemon water as a treat and not the norm.
maggie, dammit says
June 17, 2010 at 10:09 amNoooooooooooooo!
Giving up the wine was bad enough. Now lemons?!
WHY GOD WHY.
Sharon says
June 17, 2010 at 10:09 amI vote for the straw method!
BOSSY says
June 17, 2010 at 10:11 amBossy asked her dentist about using a straw, but he said it doesn’t make a significant difference.
Suzanne says
June 17, 2010 at 10:11 amI’ll just switch to limes. Yeah, that’ll work.
Pammer says
June 17, 2010 at 10:11 amI wonder how Bossy’s dentist might feel about limes?
Reaching, I know. Am also a slave to the lemon.
Sallie (FullTime-Life) says
June 17, 2010 at 10:12 amInstall a water filter? we have one in both our tiny houses and that makes our water drinkable, but not as pretty as a floating lemon slice. I might try the cucumber anyway though.
Debby says
June 17, 2010 at 10:13 amLight beer?
lauren says
June 17, 2010 at 10:31 ami heard this same stunning revelation about six months ago and was absolutely devastated as all i drink is red wine and water with lemon (and lemons on every food imaginable!) not only do i do it but i raised my daughter on lemons! i’ve tried the lime, the straw, and brushing a couple hours later but i still relapse and just enjoy lemon like it’s ben & jerry’s.
Danita says
June 17, 2010 at 10:36 amOh no!!!! Say it isn’t so! I HATE water, with a passion, unless it’s drowning in lemons.
Roya says
June 17, 2010 at 11:09 amWhat about just lemon peel? It would give you the essential oils without the nasty acid…
Just saying its worth a shot.
The Domestic Goddess says
June 17, 2010 at 11:10 amWhatevs. English Breakfast Tea with Demerara sugar is apparently bad for you, too> And my teeth haven’t fallen out yet.
DawnA says
June 17, 2010 at 11:10 amIf you drink enough wine you won’t care about the condition of your teeth. Just a suggestion.
BossysMom says
June 17, 2010 at 11:29 amAnd, I might add, Bossys dentist is a very conservative practioner, he underplays most things…so coming from him, I’ll switch to an orange slice or two.
ScottsdaleGirl says
June 17, 2010 at 11:35 amI stopped having lemons in my water when dining out when I read or saw (memory like a sieve!) something about the kitchen cutting raw meat and then lemons.
I said NO THANKS to your ECOLI WEDGE right then and there.
Lemon Pie? White wine? VODKA?
kathleenmary says
June 17, 2010 at 12:23 pmMy dentist said the very same thing about o.j. Said if you have it in the morning do so after brushing, otherwise it’s like brushing your teeth with comet. Isn’t that a pleasant thought!
Amber says
June 17, 2010 at 12:38 pmI had a bout of bad dentist news myself ((hugs)) stupid teeth
Meg says
June 17, 2010 at 12:53 pmI wonder how damaging that lime wedge is that I put in my gin and tonic?
Z. Mulls says
June 17, 2010 at 1:23 pmI kept clicking on the dentist picture to get the sting of dramatic music the moment required.
I drink wine with a small funnel. Doesn’t even touch the teeth. So I’m good.
km says
June 17, 2010 at 2:10 pmlemon water and wine bad for teeth. Ah well, better than doing meth !
Rebekah says
June 17, 2010 at 2:57 pmMy mom has been telling me this for yeeeeeaaaaars…but have I listened to her? Oh no. Well now she can give me a big old “I TOLD YOU SO!”
CS says
June 17, 2010 at 3:19 pmI feel your pain. My dentist scolds me and my weak enamel about this all the time, and you can add to that list of enemies of enamel my personal favorite: bubbly water.
Rorrington the Fireman says
June 17, 2010 at 3:53 pmOh, criminy! So you’ll stop the Lemon-Water AND the red wine and be all “Looka me and my healthy teeth!”, and then step off the curb and get smooshed by a truck or something. Screw it; I’m going back to the Pinot Noir after my “No-drinking-alcohol-Month-of-June” (just to make sure i CAN in fact stop for a month). Also gave up bread, ‘taters, rice and carbs, ‘coz th jeans got snug and, and…what? TMI? Snorry.
Kim Miles says
June 17, 2010 at 4:09 pmA friend just shared this blog with me. LOVE it! Thanks!!
Jenn @ Juggling LIfe says
June 17, 2010 at 4:51 pmYikes–what about lemon-flavored water? I’m a fan of Crystal Geyser mineral water with lemon–I hope I’m not ruining my teeth–although in my case it’s my gums that are the problem.
KathyB says
June 17, 2010 at 6:49 pmWhat does this say about Sangria? Citrus and wine combined – egads!
As a child I remember eating lemon wedge with a salt shaker in hand. This was way before I knew about tequila and lime salty dogs.
Better than Meth Mouth, all I gotta say, and in this state we have the infamous Mountain Dew mouth.
bossy's friend martha's sister says
June 17, 2010 at 7:24 pmBossy… I guess I will become a dehydrated vodka drunk then! Not as pretty as a hydrated wino!
Doug says
June 17, 2010 at 7:35 pmWhere do limes, the closely related fruit and basis of Margaritas, stand in relation to the dentally malignant properties of your fruit of choice? Just askin’ ’cause if the answer is what I think it might be, that will be me, up in a tower, with a 30.06, taking out my frustrations.
Timmy says
June 17, 2010 at 8:14 pmOk, before everyone decides to boycott lemons let’s take one important fact into consideration. Bossy is talking about drinking lemon water, (a few lemons diluted by a lot of water. We’ve all seen the pic’s. It’s like a gallon of H2O in that perfect pitcher and 4 halves of lemon) As opposed to lemon juice, which is what I see most web sites obejecting to. Lemon juice is much more concentrated and harmful to enamal than the water thing.
Check this out for more interesting info.
http://affordable-dental.net/does-lemon-water-hurt-your-teeth
Basically, in moderation, the lemon with the wine and heroin… we’re all good!!!
Except without the heroin!
NaysWay says
June 17, 2010 at 11:16 pmI used to halve lemons and eat them with salt. I’d chew up all the pulp then wrap the rind around my teeth and wear them for a while. Then I was an avid tea drinker. Bossy is preaching to the choir. How I still have teeth is a mystery.
Audrey at Barking Mad says
June 17, 2010 at 11:43 pmWell there goes my love affair with lemons. I guess this explains my dental bills.
Kerri Anne says
June 17, 2010 at 11:54 pmAha! My distaste (and possible hatred) of lemon in my water has finally been vindicated!
Lemons can also bugger off my desserts because: EWH, and no thank you.
Cactus Petunia says
June 18, 2010 at 12:35 amI can take or leave the lemon water, but red wine and coffee? I’d have nothing to live for. Perfect teeth, but no life.
Di says
June 18, 2010 at 11:45 amMy dental hygienist says that if I MUST drink any of these that I should afterwards rinse my mouth out with water. At least that way the culprits do not sit on your teeth and gums for too long. I’m a coffeeholic myself.
Di
APeetsMom says
June 18, 2010 at 9:04 pmDamn. Guilty on all counts. Damn Damn Damn.
21st Century Housewife says
June 18, 2010 at 11:29 pmThis is terrible news! I love lemons and red wine — together or separately!
Carolyn says
June 18, 2010 at 11:33 pmThe worse news ever….I had JUST discovered the joys of “sp water” between drinks…..water with lemon, lime and orange slices, maybe some cucumber….HOW can that be bad for us?
Meg at the Members Lounge says
June 19, 2010 at 2:39 pmTip for all of us lemon and wine aficionados: Sensodyne.
jeanie says
June 19, 2010 at 10:59 pmI bet the fun police had a hand in that…
gg says
June 20, 2010 at 5:52 pmDihydrogen dioxide and citric acid has…Oh My!
margalit says
June 21, 2010 at 1:24 amLast summer I plucked some fresh basil leaves and plopped them into my water bottle from which I was drinking. It was delicious. DELICIOUS. And not bad for the teeth. Try it.
who says
January 8, 2012 at 3:41 amTrue True True, the best thing you can do at this point is brush after every meal with flouride toothpaste and if you can’t brush three times a day then morning and night is the best substitute. However the best thing a person can do is have strong genes, and the mother while pregnant have a wholy nutritious diet and all the vitamins and minerals at sufficient levels. And the same things for the child until they get their permanent teeth.