Top tips for looking after your mouth this summer

Author: Dr Alexandra Jones, Co-Founder and Board Chair

Summer is a time where we hopefully enjoy some slower days, salty swims, picnics, and long road trips. But it can be a surprisingly rough season for your oral health.

Hot weather, holiday snacking, sugary drinks, extra alcohol and stress all change what’s happening inside your mouth. So, we’ve pulled together our best summer-proof tips to keep your teeth, gums and jaw happy all season long.

Here’s how to give your mouth a little love while you’re out living your best summer life.

1. Stay hydrated with water (your mouth’s BFF)

Water does more than quench thirst, it literally helps protect your teeth. In fact, feeling thirsty can be a late stage sign that your body needs more water!

When you’re dehydrated, your saliva drops. And saliva isn’t just spit, it’s your mouth’s built-in defence system:

• it neutralises acids

• washes away food particles

• carries minerals that help repair early decay

Hot weather + long beach days or bushwalks = easy dehydration. So keep a water bottle with you, refill often, and sip regularly. Your mouth and body will thank you.

2. Give your mouth a break between snacks

There can be a lot of food around at this time of year, like chips, fruit, ice creams, and BBQs, and the temptation to graze all day is real! The thing is, constant snacking keeps your saliva in “acid mode.”

Every time you eat, your mouth becomes acidic for around 30 minutes while your saliva works hard to neutralise things again. If that window never gets a break, your enamel doesn’t either.

Our tip:

• Try to bunch food into mealtimes rather than all-day grazing.

• If you do snack often, pair it with water and take breaks so your saliva can reset and protect your teeth.

3. Make non-alcoholic drinks a priority

Many alcoholic drinks are acidic, sugary, dehydrating, or sometimes all three. Alcohol also dries out your mouth, which weakens that protective saliva barrier.

If you do drink alcohol, try:

• swapping in non-alcoholic options

• choosing sparkling water or soda water as a mixer

• alternating every drink with a big glass of water

Your mouth will stay clearer, less acidic, and much better protected.

4. If you’re a clencher or grinder, take a moment to reset

Holidays are meant to be relaxing, but stress doesn’t take time off and for a lot of us, it shows up in the jaw.

Clenching and grinding (often without noticing) overworks your jaw muscles and can chip teeth, wear enamel and cause headaches.

A simple summer circuit-breaker is to take 5 minutes to relax your face and jaw.

Try this quick reset:

• Drop your tongue from the roof of your mouth

• Unclench your teeth

• Breathe slowly in through your nose, out through your mouth

• Release your shoulders

• Imagine your jaw melting downward

Do this once or twice a day, or whenever you feel tension creeping in. This small habit can make a really big difference.

5. Bonus: Keep the basics going, even when routines shift

Summer can throw off your usual rhythm and routines, often with different sleep times, travel, kids home from school, or family or friends visiting.

If you can maintain some basics though, it can go a long way:

• Brush twice a day with fluoride toothpaste

• Clean between teeth (floss, interdental brushes, whatever works for you)

• Drink plenty of water

Prevention really is the best gift you can give yourself.

A healthy summer isn’t just sunscreen and hydration, it’s caring for your mouth too.

Good oral health helps you eat, laugh, smile and enjoy the season without pain or stress.

These tips are all about supporting your mouth’s natural defences, helping prevent problems long before you need a dentist.