Are sunflower seeds bad for your teeth?

But munching on hard, frozen cubes can chip or even crack your teeth. And if your mindless chomping irritates the soft tissue inside a tooth, regular toothaches may follow. Hot foods and cold foods may trigger quick, sharp jabs of pain or a lingering toothache. read more

Grinding whole sunflower seeds with the teeth can cause gum sores. In this Pakistani investigation, consumption of dry roasted sunflower seeds was associated with the higher rates of damage of the tooth enamel. 4. Epiglottitis. Shells could theoretically stick in your throat and cause inflammation of the epiglottis (the fold that covers the voice box). read more

There's a special technique for eating sunflower seeds and, like most kids, I spent hours perfecting it. I'd stockpile a few salted unshelled seeds in one cheek like a squirrel, release them one at a time to crack their fragile armor with my front teeth, extract the kernels and manipulate the empty shells with my tongue to my other cheek for storage. read more