Keep Your Teeth Healthy and Strong

How to Keep Your Teeth Healthy 

and Strong

Sparkling smiles are attractive and infectious. When you smile with a big, healthy smile, it makes other people smile back at you. You can maintain a healthy smile by practicing good oral hygiene, eating a healthy diet, and getting regular preventative care.

Brush for at least two minutes. Do this in the morning and at night before you go to sleep. The most important thing in maintaining a good oral hygiene is to adopt the correct brushing technique. Ask your dentist or hygienist to teach you how to correctly use the toothbrush and how to apply it to your gums and teeth. Brush with a soft bristled brush or an electric toothbrush. Brush all the surfaces of each tooth, including the chewing surface, the back and the front.

Protect your teeth against decay by using a toothpaste with fluoride. Fluoride strengthens the enamel coating on your teeth, making it less vulnerable to decay. Ideally, the toothpaste should have 1,350–1,500 ppm of fluoride in it. This is safe for children as long as an adult supervises them to make sure they don’t eat it. If you use a lower strength toothpaste for a young child, make sure it has at least 1,000 ppm of fluoride. If it is lower, it won’t have enough to prevent tooth decay.

Prevent tooth decay from occurring between your teeth by flossing. Flossing will remove food particles, plaque, and bacteria that might be hiding between your teeth where the bristles of your brush can’t reach them. Use about a foot-and-a-half of floss. Wind it around one finger of your dominant hand and one finger of your non-dominant hand. Then, with your dominant hand, insert the floss between your teeth and curve the floss around one of the teeth. Rub up and down, including going gently below the gum line. 

Use mouthwash. You can reduce the amount of bacteria floating around your mouth by rinsing with an antibacterial mouthwash or or salt solution. If you use a mouthwash, look for one with fluoride in it. A good mouthwash should also have chlorhexidine in a small concentration, such as 0.02%. Avoid products that contain alcohol
To make a salt solution, dissolve salt into a cup of warm water. As you add salt, taste it to make sure it isn't so salty that you won't be able to stand it. If it's too salty, add more water.

Scrape bacteria off your tongue with a scraper or by brushing it. The roughness of your tongue traps food particles and bacteria, which may contribute to tooth decay. Don't press so hard it hurts or bleeds. You should be able to see a film of saliva and debris on the scraper by just moving it gently. Go from back to front. Some toothbrushes have tongue scrapers on the back of them. Look to see if yours has a rough little pad.

Don’t smoke. Smoking will stain your teeth yellow, give you bad breath, and make you more likely to get gum disease and mouth cancers. If you already smoke, you can greatly increase your overall health and the health of your teeth by quitting.

Reduce your sugar intake. When the bacteria in your mouth break down sugars, it produces acids which dissolve the protective enamel coating on your teeth. This makes your teeth more vulnerable to decay. You can limit you sugar intake by:
Not eating desserts like candy, chocolate, cakes, ice cream, pastries
Not adding sugar to your tea or coffee
Eating low sugar breakfast cereals

Avoid drinks that stain your teeth. The following food are very common causes of yellow, unhealthy looking teeth:
Wine
Tea
Coffee

Cut down your alcohol consumption. Alcohol wears away the protective enamel coating on your teeth. Prolonged consumption of high amounts can lead to cavities and tissue dehydration, making the the tissue in your mouth weaker and more vulnerable to bacterial aggression. People who both drink and smoke are at a higher risk of mouth cancers.

Eat extra crunchy, raw fruits and vegetables. These foods will help scrape your teeth clean as you eat them. And they are good for you! Options include:
Apples
Celery
Carrots
Peppers
Cucumbers
Lettuce
Broccoli

Reduce the amounts of sticky foods you eat. They are more likely to leave sugary films that will lead to tooth decay between your teeth. Examples include:
Granola bars
Dried fruit like raisins
Gummy candies or taffies

Limit the amount of highly acidic foods and drinks you consume. Acid can dissolve the enamel on your teeth and make the more vulnerable to decay. Highly acidic foods and drinks include:
Orange juice
Grape fruit juice
Lemons
Pickles
Cola
Wine
Vinegar salad dressings

Drink extra water. Water will help prevent food from getting stuck in your teeth. If your mouth is dry, you are probably not drinking enough water. The quantity of water you need will vary daily based on the weather, your activity level, and the proper functioning of your salivary glands. The first sign of dehydration is thirst. So if you are thirsty, help yourself to a tall glass of water.

Chew sugar-free gum after eating. Gum will make the saliva flow, which will help breakdown any remaining pieces of food. It is important that the gum be sugar-free, otherwise you are coating your teeth in sugar and increasing the chances of tooth decay. Sugar-free gums are widely available at local grocery stores and drug stores.

Go to a dentist if you notice symptoms suggesting that you are having problems with your teeth. At the early stages, it might not hurt, so it may be tempting to put off going to the dentist. But once the problem is more severe, it will be harder to treat. Schedule a cleaning and dental exam if you have:
Red, swollen, or painful gums
Bleeding when you brush and floss
Gums that are contracting away from your teeth
Permanent teeth that are loose
Sensitivity to the temperature of your food
Bad breath or a strange taste in your mouth that doesn’t go away
Pain
Swelling in your jaw
Headaches

Discuss treatment options with your dentist. If you have tooth or mouth pain, you may need treatment for:
Cavities
An abscessed tooth
An impacted tooth
Gum disease

Get a professional teeth cleaning. It is best to get your teeth cleaned and get an exam every six months. Children should start seeing a dentist as soon as they begin getting baby teeth. Your dentist or hygienist will:
Thoroughly clean your teeth
Removing any of the hard plaques that often develop in hard to clean places
Check to make sure you are not developing any cavities
Check the health of your gums
Show you the proper technique for brushing and flossing

Talk to your dentist about protective treatments for your teeth. Two common and effective ones are fluoride varnish and fissure sealants. Both are suitable for adults and children. Fluoride varnish is a treatment where a strong fluoride is applied to the teeth to make the enamel stronger and less vulnerable to decay. This can be done every six months on both baby and permanent teeth. 

Find affordable dental care. Dental care can be expensive and many health insurance plans may not cover it. You can look for low cost dental care by: Contacting dentistry and dental hygiene schools to see if they offer low cost treatment to help students get experience. This will be supervised by an experienced dentist or hygienist. You can search online at the websites of organizations like the American Dental Association or the American Dental Hygienists Association.

For more details please Contact Us....... Sen's Dental Clinic & Braces Center...... 9830464066 / 9163927966.