What Causes a Cavity

Plaque, that whitish film on teeth that results when bacteria from eating, drinking and smoking, is the principal cause for tooth cavities.

Plaque that doesn't get washed away by saliva, brushed away by your toothbrush or removed by flossing produces acid that dissolves the minerals that make your tooth enamel hard.

Though the mineral salts in your saliva help add to the hardness of your teeth but are vulnerable to attack by acids that cause them to break down.

Tooth enamel is very hard, mainly because it contains durable mineral salts, like calcium, but when teeth are not professionally cleaned frequently enough, plaque builds up and eats tiny holes in tooth enamel until the enamel surface of the tooth becomes porous surface.

After a while, the acid from plaque makes the tiny holes in the enamel bigger until one large hole appears. This hole is a cavity, and unless it is professionally cleaned out and filled, the tooth will eventually decay completely.