Dental hygiene is an essential part of self-care and improving our overall health condition. Visiting your dentist regularly will ensure you can prevent any issues on time. Many health problems, including pneumonia and cardiovascular diseases, come from poor dental care or using the wrong products for your oral hygiene.
Our mouth is the point where many processes happen, including eating, drinking water, and even breathing sometimes. It’s connected to the respiratory tract, brain, and bloodstream. Bacteria presence is normal, but brushing our teeth, flossing, and even tongue cleaning can keep that under control without letting the bacteria enter the body.
Also, several health conditions can have a negative effect on your oral health. For example, if you have diabetes or osteoporosis, take painkillers, antihistamines, or antidepressants, or are pregnant, your dental health may decline.
As you can see, it’s important to prevent oral infections so you can improve your overall health conditions. And it’s quite easy to do that since you probably know these things:
1. Use quality toothbrush and toothpaste
This is essential. There are many different types of brushes and toothpaste, but you need to find those appropriate for your overall dental condition. Sometimes, your dentist may recommend some specific type of toothpaste to be used. For example, people who need higher concentrations of sodium fluoride to prevent tooth decay, can use Clinpro 5000 toothpaste, together with a proper toothbrush for maximum effect.
Even though over-the-counter toothpaste is quite enough, sometimes a prescription product is needed, so make sure you consult with your dentist on this.
2. Flossing is important
You can have the best toothbrush on the market, but dental floss is a must for your oral care routine. Tiny food pieces can get stuck between your teeth, decaying and causing an unpleasant taste in the mouth and bad breath. Also, it can damage the teeth’ enamel, depending on the type of stuck food. So, don’t skip this step because it already sounds bad enough for your health if you don’t floss.
3. Avoid sweet drinks
Sugar can also affect your teeth. So, if you enjoy sweet coffee, fizzy drinks, ice tea, or other sugary beverages, you need to limit your daily intake. When sugar and sweeteners stay too long in your mouth, it serves as food to some bacteria that turn them into acids. And we know acids can damage the teeth and increase the risk of the cavity.
4. Drink enough water
It’s important to stay hydrated so you can maintain the saliva flow. Drinking enough water throughout the day promotes your overall health. But, when it comes to oral health, saliva prevents food particles from sticking to your teeth, where bacteria can grow. Also, when your mouth is moist, it cleans itself, preventing bad breath.
5. Quit smoking and alcohol intake
Cigarettes are known to cause an unpleasant mouth smell, and so does alcohol. If you use them daily, your dental health will surely decline. We suggest giving up on smoking and drinking alcohol, so you can prevent dental issues on time.
6. Some medications can cause dry mouth
If you take a specific medication and dry mouth is a side effect, inform your dentist about it. They can recommend something to avoid the dryness, like more water or chewing gum to stimulate saliva production. When your mouth is dry, it doesn’t clean itself, increasing the risk of bacteria buildup and bad odors.
7. Visit your dentist regularly
It would help if you visited your dentist every 6 to 12 months for regular checkups. If you have some dental issue, you have to do it more often. Some people are afraid of dentists, and they go when the situation is really bad. Regular dental appointments can prevent many problems, so don’t skip your next visit if you want to keep your teeth and gums healthy all the time.
When to visit the dentist earlier?
You don’t need to wait for six months or more if something is wrong. Don’t ignore the tooth pain or the visible changes in color. If some tooth breaks, visit the dentist immediately. There are urgent situations, and when not treated on time, they can cause even worse health issues.
Don’t ignore the bleeding gums and visible signs of infection, or if you can clearly see the yellowish hardened plaque over your teeth. Bad breath is also a huge issue, and if it appears suddenly, you need to address the reasons.
Conclusion
Maintaining proper oral hygiene is the key factor in improving your dental health. Use quality products and dental floss, and don’t use worn-out toothbrushes. Also, with some changes in your daily habit, you can improve your overall dental condition and prevent many health issues. As we said, many processes begin in our mouths. That’s why we need to pay more attention to our dental health, brush our teeth properly, and visit a dentist regularly or when needed.
