Cavities

During the first 28 years of my life, I was lucky enough to develop only one cavity in my mouth, at the age of 19. Since arriving in Thailand 15 months ago, my teeth have apparently become very unhappy with me. A trip to the dentist in January to check on a sore tooth revealed that I had a number of cavities developing. In a state of some shock, and not enjoying the subsequent trips to Bangkok to fix the problems, I have been trying to analyze the reasons behind this sudden change!

Reason #1: Our drinking water in Thailand does not have flouride. I never realized how lucky I was in the USA to have flouride in my water.

Reason #2: The Thai diet is much higher in sugar than my diet in America was. Beverages, snacks, "coffee breaks," and even stir-fries have added lots of unnoticed sugar to my life. This evening Annie commented that one frustration during her time in Thailand has been that she is unable to buy a package of crackers or a bag of dried fruit without then discovering the items to be coated in sugar.

In any case, here we are drinking some very strongly sweeted "café yen" (Thai iced coffee) while visiting one of Chiang Mai’s most famous wats. Yes, even on top of a mountain at a Buddhist holy site, you can get your sugar kick.