When it comes to creating a healthy dental and oral health care routine, there isn’t really that much to it for most people. The same few guiding principles of preventative care and regular cleaning that your dentist has been recommending since you were five largely remain the same, and following them closely will keep you from having to deal with very many serious dental health challenges over the course of your life.
However, habit-forming can be hard, and we’re not here to judge anyone — we’re here to help. At Century Dental in Jackson and Seaview Dental in Eatontown, we believe in providing the highest quality dental services to our patients and providing helpful information about dental health to the community at large.
Check out these five important elements of a good dental health routine and consider where you might be able to make changes to better protect your teeth, and ultimately, your wallet. To get started on the right foot, schedule an appointment or cleaning with us today.
It All Starts With Regular Brushing
If you want to make sure that your dental care routine is starting with the right foundation, then the very first thing you need to commit to is regular, daily brushing. At a minimum, you should be brushing in the mornings and then again before bed. Adding in a third, midday brushing session won’t hurt you, but twice a day is what most dentists are going to recommend.
Without the proper foundation of regular tooth brushing, your teeth and gums won’t get the foundational cleaning that allows other types of preventative dental and gum care, like flossing and using mouthwash, to be as effective as they can be.
Add In a Frequent (Daily) Flossing
While brushing is the single most important element in your daily dental health efforts, flossing allows you to deep dive and clean beyond the surface area of what your toothbrush can realistically reach.
Proper flossing will allow you to work out most of the food debris that builds up between teeth and gums. Doing so limits the amount of plaque build-up and helps to reduce your chances of developing gum disease and tooth decay.
Keep In Touch With Your Dentist
While we don’t expect you to become best friends with your dentist, we hope that you keep in touch by making sure to visit at least twice a year for checkups and cleanings. Making sure that you are getting regular cleanings does two things for you that you can’t achieve with home care alone.
The first is the breakdown and removal of tartar. As tartar builds up on your teeth and hardens, special tools are needed to safely remove it to expose your tooth again. Second, regular cleanings allow an experienced dental professional to keep an eye on your dental health and help you catch the early signs of tooth decay, gum disease, or other problems before they get serious.
Consider Your Diet
Given the fact that your teeth are responsible for breaking down just about everything that goes in your mouth, what you eat on a regular basis matters a great deal to the well being of your gums and teeth.
Foods and drinks that are high in sugar have been proven to contribute to faster plaque buildup which, in turn, speeds to degradation of enamel, tooth, gum, ligament, and even bone. While completely cutting out these goods is unrealistic, working to manage a safe level of consumption can be achieved by cutting out or limiting high-sugar items like soda and candy.
Consider Your Habits
Your diet may not be the only thing you want to evaluate if you are working towards taking better care of your teeth and gums. The use of tobacco products and the regular consumption of alcohol are both quite harmful to your teeth and gums.
Alcohol wears down your teeth’s enamel, their natural line of defense against wear and tear. As this happens, cavities (tooth decay) and root infections become more likely and more common.
The use of tobacco products is hard on your teeth, but it is especially hard on your gums. Smoking and using chew, or dip, can degrade your gum line and increase your risk of oral bacterial infections that will jeopardize your teeth and gums.
Working to reduce or eliminate the use of these types of products is a great choice in terms of promoting a healthier mouth.
Schedule an Appointment With Century Dental or SeaView Dental Today
To get your dental health routine started off right, schedule an appointment with the dentists at Jersey Shore Dentists at Century Dental in Jackson, Seaview Dental in Eatontown, or Seaview Dental Stafford in Manahawkin today.
