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Patient Library
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Archive:
- 2019
- January (6)
- A New Veneer with Minimal or No Tooth Alteration
- How a New Approach to Treating Decay Could Benefit You
- 'Get Rid' of Those Unattractive Teeth with Porcelain Veneers
- 3 Things You Might Notice with Your Child's Teeth That Need a Dentist
- You may Need Orthodontic Treatment Before Obtaining Implants
- Porcelain Veneers Might not be the Best Option for Teenagers
- 2018
- December (6)
- Why the Treatment Model for Your Jaw Joint Disorder Matters
- Practice Daily Oral Hygiene to Prevent Calcified Plaque Formation
- Regardless of What You've Seen Online, Don't Fear a Root Canal Treatment
- Look at Your Options for Saving a Tooth First Before Replacing it
- Dental Visits are Key to Detecting Early Developing Tooth Decay
- 4 Reasons you may want Your Dentist to Whiten Your Teeth
- November (6)
- Dental Care is Difficult but not Impossible for a Special Needs Child
- Survey Says: They'd Rather Have a Root Canal
- Your Case of Gingivitis Could Develop into Something More Harmful
- This November, Become a Non-Smoker
- Dentures are Still a Viable Choice for Tooth Replacement
- Don't Ignore Sudden Tooth Pain - Your Teeth may be Telling you Something
- October (6)
- Try the Conservative Path to Jaw Pain Relief First
- Inflammation: the Link Between Gum Disease and Cardiovascular Disease
- How to Maximize Your Child's Dental Health Potential
- Don't Stress Over Your Child's Teeth Grinding Habit Unless it Persists
- 3 Factors That Could Affect the Success of a Root Canal Treatment
- Ease Your Child's Teething Discomfort with these Tips
- September (6)
- Simple or Surgical? Choosing the Right Kind of Tooth Extraction
- Not all Dental Crowns Share the Same Quality of Life-Likeness
- We can Build up Lost Bone Before Your Implant
- Treating Gum Disease around Tooth Roots is Hard - but Not Impossible
- 3 Ways to Take the Jitters Out of Dental Visits
- A Low Sugar, High Fiber Diet will Help Keep Your Teeth and Gums Healthy
- August (6)
- Cosmetic Questions to Ask to Get You on the Right Path to a Better Smile
- World Cup Soccer Coach-Dentist Saves the Day!
- What to do if Your Child has a Toothache
- Be on the Alert for Gum Disease While Wearing Braces
- Veneers may Offer a Less Invasive Way to Transform Your Smile
- Recreational Marijuana Could Increase Your Risk of Gum Disease
- July (7)
- 4 Reasons why Quitting Chewing Tobacco is Good for Your Oral Health
- If at All Possible, Primary Teeth are Worth Saving
- Your Dental Care Efforts are Just as Important as Your Dentist's
- Know the Facts to Reduce Your Child's Teething Discomfort
- Get Your Vitamins the Natural Way for Optimum Dental Health
- Don't Delay Treatment of Gum Disease
- What You Should Know About Veneers for Teenagers
- June (6)
- 3 Types of Tooth Pain and What They Might be Telling You
- 3 Questions to Answer Before Your Smile Makeover
- Professional Whitening Offers an Effective Way to Restore Your Smile's Luster
- Gum Disease is Still a Threat to Your Dental Implants
- Saving a Diseased Primary Tooth Could Mean Better Oral Health Later in Life
- Winning the War on Gum Disease Requires Post-Treatment Vigilance
- March (5)
- Although a Challenge, Chronically Ill Children Need Tooth Decay Prevention
- Transform Your Smile with Porcelain Veneers
- 4 Things You Should be Doing Now for Your Baby's Long-Term Dental Health
- Topical Fluoride Adds Extra Protection against Tooth Decay
- 3 Tips for Helping Your Kids Develop Great Tooth-Friendly Habits
- 2017
- October (5)
- Monitoring Your Child's Thumb Sucking Could Help Avoid Future Bite Problems
- The Right Treatment for Your Child's Injured Tooth Increases its Survival
- Antibiotics Could Help Ensure your Implant Surgery is Successful
- 4 Reasons Why You May Need to See a Periodontist for Your Gum Disease
- These 3 Tasks Show How Saliva is Amazing
- May (5)
- Watch for These Developing Bite Problems with Your Child's Teeth
- Techniques for Keeping Impacted Canine Teeth from Spoiling Your Smile
- Consider Bone Health When Deciding Between Implants and Dentures
- Don't let Periodontal Disease Cause Your Gums to Recede
- New Saliva Test may Help Identify Oral Cancer Earlier
- April (5)
- A Healthy Diet is Your Best Source for Vitamins and Minerals
- Encourage Your College-Bound Child to Practice Good Oral Health Habits
- Pediatric Dentists Specialize in Dental Care for Children and Teens
- An Affordable RPD Could be the Answer to Your Missing Teeth Problems
- Safety is a Priority When Imaging Children's Teeth with X-Rays
- 2016
- November (5)
- Reduce Your Oral Cancer Risk with Better Diet and Lifestyle Choices
- Don't Let the Acid in Sports and Energy Drinks Ruin Your Tooth Enamel
- Inflammation is a Key Element in Both Oral and Systemic Diseases
- Don't Let an Eating Disorder Wreck Oral Health
- Effective Dental Care Depends First on Getting the Big Picture
- September (5)
- Implants can Support a Total Tooth Replacement Restoration
- Keeping up Good Hygiene Still a Necessity with Dental Implants
- Keep Your Saliva Flowing - Your Oral Health Depends on it
- Certain Mouth Rashes Don't Respond to Topical Steroid Treatments
- Effective Oral Hygiene is Key to Disease Prevention While Wearing Braces
- June (5)
- Dental Offices Hold to the Highest Standards to Protect Patients from Infection
- 4 Things You Should be Doing to Maintain a Healthy Mouth
- A Crown Could be the Answer to Preserving Your Damaged Tooth
- Teens Benefit Most from A Temporary Solution to Missing Teeth
- Keeping Gum Disease at Bay Could Help Your Overall Health
- March (5)
- Treating Small Enamel Cracks Could Help you Avoid a Dangerous Tooth Fracture
- Kids, Cats and Canines: Dental Development Through the Ages
- Surgically Accessing Sinuses can Help Grow New Bone for Implants
- Though not Always Seen, it's Still Important to Replace a Missing Back Tooth
- Advancing Gum Disease Requires Thorough Treatment to Control it
- 2015
- December (5)
- Five Facts about Bacteria
- Extracting Wisdom Teeth Now May Prevent Dental Problems Later
- Cosmetic Gum Surgery Can Restore Health as Well as Appearance to Gums
- Dental Amalgam Continues to be a Durable and Safe Tooth Filling
- Treating a Baby Tooth with Inner Decay can be Complicated - but Still Necessary
- August (5)
- Attention to Detail Crucial to a Beautiful Smile Supported by Dental Implants
- Air Abrasion Offers a More Pleasant Dental Office Experience than Drills
- Replacing a Back Tooth May Help You Avoid Future Dental Problems
- Conscious Sedation Eases Treatment Anxiety for Young Dental Patients
- Brushing and Flossing Hard to Do? Consider Your 'Power' Options
- 2014
- September (5)
- Making the Right Choices With Removable Partial Dentures
- Determining the Cause of Tooth Looseness Key to Effective Treatment
- Finding the Right Bacterial Balance for Optimum Oral Health
- Successful Outcomes With Dentures Depends on Attention to Detail
- Extend the Life of Your Dental Appliance With Proper Care
- 2013
- 2012
- August (8)
- Nine Things to Expect During Your Appointment with the Dental Hygienist
- Oral Health Tips for Special Needs Children
- Testing Your Knowledge on Caring for Your Dentures
- Understanding The Factors That Can Influence Dental Implant Success
- FAQ: What You Need to Know About Your Child's Baby Teeth
- Crowns: Do You Know Your Options?
- Cat Cora's 6 Ways to Keep Kids Off Junk Food
- Sinus Surgery — Creating Bone for Dental Implants “Out of Thin Air”
- 2011
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- oral hygiene (37)
- oral health (80)
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Categories:
Your Dental Care Efforts are Just as Important as Your Dentist's
If you’re seeing your dentist regularly, that’s great. But if that’s all you’re doing to stay ahead of dental disease, it’s not enough. In fact, what you do daily to care for your teeth is often the primary factor in whether or not you’ll maintain a healthy mouth.
Top of your oral care to-do list, of course, is removing daily plaque buildup from teeth and gums. This sticky film of bacteria and food particles can cause both tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease. You do that with effective daily brushing and flossing.
Effective brushing starts with the right toothbrush—for most people a soft-bristled, multi-tufted brush—and fluoride toothpaste. As to technique, you should first avoid brushing too hard or too often (more than twice a day). This can damage your gums and cause them to recede, exposing the tooth roots to disease. Instead, use a gentle, scrubbing motion, being sure to thoroughly brush all tooth surfaces from the gumline to the top of the teeth, which usually takes about two minutes.
The other essential hygiene task, flossing, isn’t high on many people’s “favorite things to do list” due to frequent difficulties manipulating the floss. Your dentist can help you with technique, but if it still proves too difficult try some different tools: a floss threader to make it easier to pull floss through your teeth; or a water flosser, a handheld device that directs a pressurized water stream on tooth and gum surfaces to loosen and flush away plaque.
And don’t forget other tooth-friendly practices like avoiding sugary snacks between meals, drinking plenty of water to avoid dry mouth, and even waiting to brush or floss about an hour after eating. The latter is important because acid levels rise during eating and can temporarily soften enamel. The enzymes in saliva, though, can neutralize the acid and re-mineralize the enamel in about thirty minutes to an hour. Waiting to brush gives saliva a chance to do its job.
Lastly, keep alert for anything out of the ordinary: sores, lumps, spots on the teeth or reddened, swollen, bleeding gums. All these are potential signs of disease. The sooner you have them checked the better your chances of maintaining a healthy mouth.
If you would like more information on caring for your teeth at home, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “10 Tips for Daily Oral Care at Home.”