Oral health is the health of your teeth, gums, and mouth. Why should you care? Good oral hygiene is for more than a dazzling smile: Research links gum disease with systemic health problems, including stroke, heart disease, and diabetes. When it comes to taking care of your teeth and gums, it’s about having heathy habits. Let’s look at nine habits that will improve your oral health. Best of all – they’re doable!
Mind your diet
When you eat a nutrient-rich, low-sugar diet, you’re doing something positive for your oral health, not to mention your entire body runs better on a nutritious diet that’s low in sugar. So, skip sugary and ultra-processed fare and snack on raw, crunchy fruits and vegetables. This will help keep clear your mouth of food particles left after mealtime. Also, sip water throughout the day to avoid dry mouth. Saliva washes away bacteria and acids that contribute to tooth decay. It also helps you avoid those annoying sugar cravings that contribute to cavities.
Brush your teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste.
Start with the basics. Brush your teeth two times a day to improve your oral health. It works! Just ask your dentist. Brushing with a soft to medium toothbrush (hard brushes apply too much pressure) helps dislodge gum-damaging plaque, a film of bacteria that forms on your teeth. If you don’t remove it, plaque hardens into tartar, which bacteria that cause tooth decay and gum disease feast on.
The American Dental Association recommends brushing twice per day: once in the morning and again at bedtime. More might sound better when it comes to brushing but avoid brushing more than twice a day. Brushing too often too often or with a hard-bristled toothbrush could lead to enamel erosion over time, so don’t go overboard.
Floss daily
You should floss at least once a day, but most importantly, do it right. Here are guidelines for being a more effective flosser:
- Tear off a piece of floss that’s about eighteen inches long. Wrap the ends around your middle fingers, leaving about two inches in between.
- Guide the floss gently through your teeth, so you don’t hurt your gums. You want to go under them, but not into the gum pocket itself.
- Gently move the floss back and forth up and down against each tooth, before moving on to the next one.
- Do this in an up-and-down motion on both sides of all your teeth, including those in the back of your mouth.
- Don’t forget to clean between your teeth and behind your back molars.
Avoid tobacco products and smoking
Don’t put your oral health or your general health at risk with tobacco products. When you use tobacco in any form, you raise your risk of mouth, throat, and lung cancer. Plus, smoking dries out your mouth and makes it easier for bacteria that cause gum disease, tooth loss, and bad breath to thrive. Not to mention it can stain your teeth, causing cavities and gum disease.
There are many reasons to avoid tobacco products: they’re expensive; they smell bad; the chemicals in them can damage you in terrible ways — but if none of that persuades you to quit smoking or chewing tobacco, consider this: it’s bad for your teeth and gums. If the thought of needing dentures makes you queasy, avoid tobacco at all costs!
Use the right tools to clean your mouth and teeth.
When you browse the toothbrush section of a drugstore, you’ll be overwhelmed by the options. What type of toothbrush is right for you based on the data? Most dentists recommend using a soft-bristled brush with a small head. Ensure it has a long handle that’s comfortable to hold and feels good in your hand. If you have trouble brushing your teeth manually, an electric toothbrush might suit you better.
Electric toothbrushes remove plaque, the thin film that sticks to teeth, more efficiently. They use vibration or rotation technology to clean your teeth thoroughly, without damaging your gums. Regardless of what type of toothbrush you use, replace it every three months or sooner if the bristles start to bend.
Rinse with water
After meals or drinks that contain sugar — such as soda pop, juice, candy bars, or trail mix — pour yourself a glass of water to drink or swish around in your mouth right after finishing a meal. It’s best to wait at least 30 minutes before brushing because acidic foods temporarily soften tooth enamel. Brushing your teeth while the enamel is soft could cause permanent damage.
Brush your tongue too
Brush your tongue each time you brush your teeth. Don’t skip it! Brushing your tongue is an effective way to remove bacteria that cause bad breath. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush or special tongue scraper (they’re usually made of metal or plastic). Move the brush gently in a circular motion, starting at the back of the tongue and working forward. Be sure to reach all surfaces of your tongue.
Manage stress
It’s not just sugar and poor oral hygiene practices that contribute to tooth decay, gum disease and dental bills. Stress causes people to unconsciously clench their jaw, all of which harms oral health and contributes to tooth damage.
Being stressed also triggers the body’s “fight or flight” response, causing a rise in blood sugar. If high blood sugar becomes habitual, leading to a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes, your teeth and gums can suffer too. Increased blood sugar encourages the growth of bacteria that cause gum disease and dental caries. Plus, when you’re stressed, you produce less teeth and gum-protective saliva. You need saliva to keep bacteria that cause gum disease in check. Talk with your dentist if you suspect you clench your jaw or grind your teeth during sleep. Your dentist may recommend a mouth guard or nightguard to protect your teeth while you sleep.
Mind the rest of your health
Make sure the rest of you, beyond your oral cavity stays healthy. If you end up on medications to treat health issues, they can affect the balance of bacteria in your mouth, also known as your oral microbiome. Some medications reduce saliva flow and make it easier for bacteria that cause dental caries to thrive. Ensure you’re doing everything you can to keep the rest of your body healthy. Certain autoimmune diseases can cause a dry mouth that worsens tooth decay.
Conclusion
Think of daily habits as the foundation of your oral health routine. It will be harder to build upon your foundation if it’s weak. But be sure to see your dentist at least every six months for deep cleaning and to catch problems before they become more urgent. It’ll save you time and money in the long run!
References:
- What Dentists Think About Using a Waterpik Vs. Dental Floss,.bustle.com/wellness/waterpik-vs-flossing.
- Nazir MA. Prevalence of periodontal disease, its association with systemic diseases and prevention. Int J Health Sci (Qassim). 2017 Apr-Jun;11(2):72-80. PMID: 28539867; PMCID: PMC5426403.
- Van der Weijden GA, Timmerman MF, Nijboer A, Lie MA, Van der Velden U. A comparative study of electric toothbrushes for the effectiveness of plaque removal in relation to toothbrushing duration. Timerstudy. J Clin Periodontol. 1993 Aug;20(7):476-81. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-051x.1993.tb00394.x. PMID: 8354721.
- Chapple, I. L. C., et al. (2017). Periodontal health and gingival diseases and conditions on an intact and a reduced periodontium: Consensus report of workgroup 1 of the 2017 World Workshop on the Classification of Periodontal and Peri-Implant Diseases and Conditions. Journal of Clinical Periodontology, 45(S20), S68-S77.
- Kilian, M., et al. (2016). The oral microbiome – an update for oral healthcare professionals. British Dental Journal, 221(10), 657-666.
- Pitts, N. B., et al. (2017). Dental caries. Nature Reviews Disease Primers, 3(1), 1-16.
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