*Updated July 2026
Key takeaways about the benefits of water:
- Drinking water throughout the day helps wash away food debris, sugar, and harmful acids that can damage teeth.
- Fluoridated water can strengthen tooth enamel and help prevent cavities and tooth decay.
- Proper hydration helps your body produce enough saliva to protect your mouth, reduce bacteria, and prevent dry mouth.
Are you drinking enough water? If not, your smile may be paying the price. At Delta Dental of New Mexico, we believe simple daily habits—like staying hydrated—can make a big difference in protecting your smile.
Staying properly hydrated supports many important functions throughout the body, including regulating temperature, aiding digestion, cushioning joints and protecting tissues and organs.
But the benefits of water go beyond overall wellness. It also plays an essential role in maintaining good oral health.
Put down the soda and discover how drinking more water can benefit your smile.
What are the oral health benefits of water?
Water does much more than quench your thirst. It can also help protect and support your oral health in several important ways. From strengthening tooth enamel to helping keep your mouth clean and supporting healthy saliva production, the benefits of water can play an important role in supporting the health of your mouth.
Fluoridated water keeps teeth strong
If you drink water from a faucet, you’re helping your teeth and bones stay strong by ingesting tiny amounts of fluoride.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral found in your teeth and bones, as well as in soil, water, plants, and even the air. It helps strengthen tooth enamel by making teeth more resistant to cavities and tooth decay. Because of these protective benefits, fluoride is commonly added to oral health products like toothpaste and some mouth rinses.
The addition of fluoride to tap water has been around for decades, starting in 1945 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Now, about 72 percent of the population of the United States has access to fluoridated water.
One of the key benefits of water, especially when it contains fluoride, is that ability to help prevent cavities and tooth decay.
Note: Some water filtration devices, such as reverse osmosis systems, can remove a significant amount of fluoride from tap water. Therefore, people who drink primarily from these systems may not get the benefits of the fluoridation of water.
Water helps wash away bacteria and sugar
One of the easiest ways to experience the benefits of water is by sipping it throughout the day. Staying hydrated can help keep your mouth cleaner and support a healthier smile by washing away food debris, sugar, and acids that linger on your teeth.
Although drinks like soda and juice may feel like they are cleaning your teeth, they actually leave behind sugar particles and acids that can harm your smile. Bacteria in the mouth feed on these sugars and produce acids, while ingredients like phosphoric, citric, and malic acids can further wear away tooth enamel, increasing the risk of cavities and tooth decay.
Water supports saliva production
Saliva, the clear liquid naturally produced in your mouth, plays an essential role in maintaining good oral health. It helps begin the digestion process by lubricating food, washing away food particles and bacteria, and slowing the growth of harmful bacteria in the mouth.
When there’s not enough saliva being produced, it can lead to xerostomia, more commonly known as dry mouth. Dry mouth is a serious oral health condition that can cause the tongue, gums, and other tissues to become painful and swollen. It also increases the risk of tooth decay and gum disease.
Your salivary glands rely on proper hydration to produce enough saliva. Among the many benefits of water, supporting saliva production is one of the most important.
Water is the best choice when it comes to supporting oral health
Staying hydrated is one of the easiest ways to support both your overall health and your oral health. From helping strengthen tooth enamel to washing away harmful bacteria and supporting healthy saliva production, the benefits of water can make a lasting difference for your smile. The next time you reach for a drink, consider choosing water instead of sugary beverages. Simple choices like this can help protect your smile over time. At Delta Dental of New Mexico, we’re here to help make preventive care easy to understand—and easier to prioritize in your daily life.