Avoid Dental Emergencies With Great Oral Hygiene

There are little things worse than a throbbing toothache. The discomfort and pain can be difficult to control, and will take over every aspect of your daily life until it is fixed. While only a dentist can diagnose where that pain is coming from, often the cause is a tooth that needs a filling, or more intricate work like a root canal or crown fitting.

Once you are feeling strong pain from your tooth, you are out of time for getting it fixed. This is a situation that needs to be addressed NOW, but, if you had paid more attention to your daily oral hygiene could you have prevented this type of dental emergency from occurring? The answer is a resounding “yes”!

Every time you open your mouth to eat, drink, or smoke, you are exposing your teeth to potential damage. The sugars in your foods, the acids in your wine, and the chemicals in your cigarettes all have the power to weaken your teeth. If you do not give your teeth the daily maintenance they need to fight back against the intruders that are entering your mouth, how do you expect them to remain strong each day? Oral hygiene does not take long to do, but will make a difference in the long term for the number of dentist visits you have to make each year.

Take action with three simple steps morning and night, and your teeth can become a strong fortress against tooth decay and damage.

Step one is to brush your teeth
The small abrasive particles within your toothpaste will scrub away any nasties that are trying to cling onto your teeth.

Step two is to floss between each tooth
Keep the floss taut as you scrape it over the sides of each tooth, and pull out any food scraps that are hiding in a hope they will get a chance to eat away at your tooth enamel.

Step three is to use mouthwash
Take a big swig of your mouthwash so that you can blast out any remaining bacteria that thinks they have got a chance of making your mouth their home.

Come and see your local Milwaukee dentist every year (or twice a year) for a cleaning so that any potential issues can be addressed quickly. If you follow these steps, there will be no need for you to be calling our dental office in pain because of a dental emergency. Instead you can keep your focus on the more enjoyable parts of your life.

Three Easy Steps to Proper Oral Hygiene

Good oral hygiene can really help you to improve your dental health, preventing cavities, reducing your risk of gum disease and generally ensuring that your next trip to the dentist is a more pleasant one. Here are three tips to help you improve your oral hygiene.

1. Replace your toothbrush often

Many people forget to replace their toothbrush on a regular basis. Your toothbrush should be firm enough to clean your teeth well. If the bristles are frayed, splayed or damaged then the toothbrush is not doing its job properly. Old and worn tooth bruses are also more likely to harbor bacteria, which means that they could be increasing your risk of infections. Rinse your toothbrush when you are finished with using it, and store it properly.

2. Take your time when brushing

Try to take your time when you are brushing your teeth. Make sure that you brush all of your teeth, and brush the top, front, and back of each tooth. After you have thoroughly brushed your teeth, take a moment to floss and use a good mouth-rinse. Flossing is particularly important because it cleans the areas of your mouth that your toothbrush cannot reach. Many people omit flossing and rush the process of brushing their teeth and this puts them at risk of tooth decay. They are then confused when they have dental problems, because they believe that they have been taking good care of their teeth.

3. Snack before brushing your teeth

There is nothing wrong with eating sweets, cakes or biscuits from time to time. In fact, if you deprive yourself of those things then you are more likely to end up binge-eating them later on, giving up on your healthy eating habits. Instead of depriving yourself, try to limit when you snack. If you have a bag of candy, eat a portion in one sitting then put it away – this will do less harm to your teeth than snacking constantly on the candy throughout the day. If you are going to eat a cake, brush your teeth afterwards. This will limit the impact of taking in all that sugar.

These simple changes to your dental care regimen will do a lot to protect you from needing the services of an urgent care dentist, and will help to ensure that next time you go to the dentists you are less likely to need a filling or other procedure.