Preventive Care in Sun City, Sun City West, and Litchfield Park, Arizona
Preventive Care Steps You Should Be Taking At Home. Preventive dental care is the practice of keeping your mouth in the healthiest state possible to avoid degenerative changes of cavities, gum disease, enamel erosion, etc.
Once any signs of tooth decay or early gum disease are noticed, it is vital to prevent progression to full blown disease. Practicing a good oral hygiene routine at home will help in keeping your gums healthy and preventing plaque formation but once it hardens it forms tartar, or calculus, that can only be removed by your dentist.
How can your Sun City dentist help you practice preventive care?
When you come in for your preventive care cleaning, your Sun City dentist will begin by removing all plaque that has built up.
They will also apply a fluoride treatment to help strengthen your teeth. Fluoride is an extremely important compound in your dental health. Teeth are composed of calcium, phosphorus and other minerals that are positively charged.
Fluoride is negatively charged and reacts with the positively charged minerals in your tooth to help strengthen it structurally in a process called remineralization.
That is why it is recommended to brush daily with a fluoride based toothpaste and have fluoride treatments as part of your regular cleaning, at least once or twice a year if you are at high risk of forming cavities.
Preventive care steps you should be taking at home
In between routine visits to your Sun City dentists, there are steps you should be taking at home to keep your teeth in the healthiest state possible.
Brushing your teeth daily, and twice a day if possible, will go a long way in cleaning off any lingering microparticles from food you eat. Brushing should be done with a fluoride based toothpaste to help strengthen your teeth. The proper brushing technique recommended by the American Dental Association is holding your toothbrush at a 45 degree angle to the gums and brushing back and forth in short strokes to cover the outer surfaces, inner surfaces and tops of your teeth.
In addition to brushing your teeth, you shouldn’t neglect your tongue! When you dont brush your tongue, it can become covered with a biofilm- a layer of bacteria, dead skin cells
and debris from food particles. This biofilm shows up as a thick coating over your tongue which can reduce the taste sensations your taste buds receive. Though biofilm is harmless, bacteria on the tongue can build up and cause bad breath as well as predispose to oral yeast infections. Brushing your tongue will keep your tongue in prime health and reduce chances of such infections.
Toothbrushes should be replaced every three to four months or if the bristles become frayed and no longer effective. Your toothbrush should also be replaced after having any sort of serious oral infection, such as a bad sore throat or tonsillitis. Dental flossing is another essential dental practice. Even though the gaps between individual teeth are small, they are still large enough for bacteria and foodstuff to gather. Flossing daily removes these bits of food. Following flossing with brushing is the most effective way to clean your mouth, as any tiny bits dislodged during flossing can be brushed away.
The best foods for your teeth
Your mouth is the entryway for all food and drink you consume and your teeth and gums are just as exposed to whatever you choose to have. Certain foods can lead to staining of your teeth over time.
Foods that are famous for staining teeth include coffee, red wine, sodas, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar and even fruits like dark berries. Green tea can even stain teeth over time. Some foods are impossible to cut out, but reducing your intake and rinsing your mouth out with water and/or brushing after eating will help reduce the risk of staining. Having a balanced, nutrient rich diet will help strengthen your teeth by providing them with essential nutrients such as calcium, phosphorus, and vitamins A, D and K. Reducing sugar intake will also keep your teeth happy as sugar causes tooth decay.
Whitening myths to avoid
There is a lot of talk about DIY at home tooth whitening solutions that provide a quick fix. Though some can provide a temporary solution for very light, superficial stains, most can actually wear down the protective enamel over your teeth and cause problems in the long term. Two of these include brushing with activated charcoal and apple cider vinegar.
Activated charcoal is a porous material that is absorbent, which is why some people think it can also absorb stain-causing particles from the teeth. However, it is extremely abrasive and wears down the protective enamel over your teeth. Tooth enamel is one of the few tissues in the body does not regenerate and also cannot be restored. Similarly, apple cider vinegar is another drink that can wear down the enamel of the teeth as it is highly acidic with a pH of 2-3. The average pH of the mouth is about 6.5 and exposing your teeth to apple cider vinegar as a whitening solution strips the teeth of enamel easily. Diluted in drink it is alright to consume, with precautions of using a straw to reduce contact with your teeth.
Practicing preventive care to keep your mouth healthy
Preventive care is recommended by Sun City’s dentists and this includes both at-home maintenance as well as professional grade routine cleaning. This keeps your teeth and gums clean and allows for early detection and prevention of budding disease. Visit your Sun City Dentist to schedule your preventive care appointment today.
