When you’re an athlete, you live in the details. Marginal gains can stack up to create massive differences in performance. You obsess over gear, training plans, nutrition, recovery and you probably have an intimate relationship with your foam roller… But there’s one crucial area often overlooked, a blind spot in the conversation about performance and longevity: oral health.
Yes, your teeth.
No hang on, don’t laugh.
I qualified as a dentist who always wanted to focus on individual care and prevention. Since then, I’ve tried to provide the services that benefit my patients the most in this regard; learning more about nutrition for vulnerable populations and more importantly, thinking about how I as a dentist can help those who CAN’T make the lifestyle changes we would deem “ideal” for oral health. And I realised there was a conflict going on, that athletes were caught in the centre of. And because of that, they’re not always getting the help, advice and treatment they need and as a result, many are leaving actually-not-so-marginal-gains on the table:
- On one side, we have dentists who don’t “get” athletes. They treat them like everyone else and dismiss the nuances of endurance sports, the carb-rich fuelling strategies required, and the stress you put on your body.
- On the other, we have sports nutritionists who excel at fuelling athletes but rarely account for the impact of nutrition choices on oral health, let alone the feedback loop between oral health and overall performance.
And often, athletes will side with nutritionists – because it’s the obvious choice in improving performance! So what we now see, is an entire population of athletes who have normalised toothaches and abscesses as a “part of life”, rather than having the opportunity to understand that they could prevent all the pain and suffering!
Let’s Talk About the Chasm
Imagine sitting in a dentist’s chair explaining your high-carb diet, only to be told to stop eating gels, bars, or sports drinks. The dentist doesn’t understand that these are non-negotiables when you’re in the middle of a 100-mile ride or grinding out a marathon. Their advice feels impractical and, frankly, dismissive.
Conversely, a sports nutritionist might craft the perfect plan to fuel your Ironman without acknowledging that frequent carbohydrate exposure can lead to enamel erosion and cavities that don’t just kill your smile but can derail your performance and overall health too.
The Problem with Ignoring Oral Health
Oral health isn’t just about white teeth and fresh breath. Poor oral health has systemic effects, including:
- Inflammation: Gum disease can spark systemic inflammation, which hinders recovery and increases the risk of injury.
- Cardiovascular Strain: Untreated infections in the mouth can affect heart health, a major red flag for endurance athletes.
- Energy Drain: Even low-grade oral infections can sap energy, leaving you with unexplained fatigue.
- Performance Impacts: Let’s not forget the obvious – oral pain or discomfort is the last thing you need mid-race or training.
Why This Matters
As a competitive athlete and nutrition coach, I’ve seen this gap firsthand. I’ve been in the race corrals, dodged post-ride bonks, and spent hours finding fuelling strategies that work for high performance and long-term health. I also understand the science of how what happens in your mouth can ripple through the rest of your body and seen first hand the challenges an athlete lifestyle can present when it isn’t coupled with the right advice from the dentist’s chair.
And the thing is, your mouth is one of the best warning centres for loads of other problems! Nutritional deficiencies, chronic inflammation, hormonal imbalances – they’re all things we can pick up in the mouth one way or another! That doesn’t mean we replace the pre-season medical, but it does mean we can be a really useful talking point if you have the right dentist, with the right knowledge, who you can build the right relationship with.
So I’m combining my experiences to focus on helping athletes navigate the intersection of nutrition, oral health, and performance. Sports dentistry isn’t just about fixing cavities; it’s about preventing problems, supporting recovery, and giving athletes like you an edge.
What Athletes Need from a Dentist
- Empathy for Your Lifestyle: Finding solutions that don’t sound like “stop drinking carbohydrate mix” and instead focus on what you are doing and why before we dispense the advice.
- Practical Prevention: Using science-backed solutions – like fluoride and hydroxyapatite treatments and dietary tweaks – to protect oral health without sacrificing performance.
- Integration with Nutrition: Providing actionable advice that bridges the gap between eating for energy and preserving oral health and shows you the links between your mouth and the rest of your body too.
What’s Next
Nutrition and oral health are two sides of the same coin, and I’m here to make sure you don’t have to choose between them. Whether you’re a weekend warrior or you’re chasing podiums, my goal is to keep you healthy, strong, and smiling every step of the way.
If you’ve ever felt dismissed by a dentist who didn’t understand your sport or struggled with nutrition advice that left your teeth in shambles, let’s talk. I’m here to create solutions that work for your unique needs, as an athlete and as a person.