Better oral care with your dentist in Havant
When it comes to taking care of our teeth, having an oral health routine that covers all the areas is really important. We have seen so many patients who have all the best intentions, but unfortunately their morning brush just isn’t cutting the mustard. With over half the UK having either decay or gum disease, this isn’t a new problem. But how can you help avoid oral health issues? Here’s all you need to know.
Oral health – what is it?
Oral health covers anything that’s related to your teeth or gums, tongue, or jaw. It is very important for a number of reasons. Having healthy teeth and gums is what will help keep your teeth in place – and losing teeth can lead to a whole new pile of physical and mental health conditions that are best avoided where possible. So here at Parkway Dental Care our dentist in Havant wants to share the best tips to avoid poor oral hygiene and thus poor oral health.
Oral hygiene
Brushing is the most important thing you can do to aid your teeth and gum’s health. Some people think a quick brush in the morning is enough to cut it, but it just really isn’t. Really best practice is to brush twice daily as an absolute minimum – if you can manage to have an extra once over after lunch then aim to do so. You should be spending a minimum of two minutes per brush – with thirty seconds on each section and working in circular motions that cover the whole 360 degrees of the tooth’s surface. If you are unsure of your technique then feel free to speak with our dentist in Havant about what technique they believe is best.
It’s really amazing how few people are known to floss on a regular basis. Flossing is time consuming and can feel a little boring even. However, it does give you an amazing resource to prevent decay and gum disease. Finding those hard-to-reach buried gums lines will only truly happen with dental floss. Yes, interdental brushes are fantastic, but they just don’t do the job the same way. Taking the time to floss is a small job today with a big end pay off. Again if you’re unsure on how to floss speak with our dentist in Havant.
Now, we like mouthwashes as an added extra. Mouthwash is not a replacement for brushing or flossing, it’s an extra tool – the cherry on top of the cake if you like for teeth cleaning. Lots of mouthwashes are packed with fluoride which is great for helping protect the tooth’s natural layer of enamel and is surely an asset to anyone’s medicine cabinet. However, if you feel like you could be starting to develop gum disease and think that using a gum disease mouthwash will help, you’d be incorrect. Gum disease needs professionals to take care of it and should be properly diagnosed by our dentist.
If you have any further questions on oral health and what constitutes a good routine then contact the practice via telephone or email.