Dental hygiene must be practiced regularly by anyone who wants to be able to smile a bright and healthy grin. Poor tooth care can cause gum disease, bad breath, and tooth decay because bacteria is allowed to develop in and around the teeth and gums. There are many simple steps the average person can follow each day to keep her teeth clean and healthy.
Flossing is the most important step to do on a regular basis and some believe that flossing is more important than brushing. Most dentist recommend flossing twice a day but if a person will floss only once then it best to floss before bedtime so that excess plaque does not lie on the gums and in between the teeth while a person sleeps. Of course it is also important to brush at least twice daily.
Many dentists believe that electric tooth brushes are more effective than non electric tooth brushes at removing plaque from around teeth and gums. Make sure to regularly replace electric or manual tooth brushes on a regular interval. Worn out bristles will not clean teeth properly and should be replaced at least once every six months.
Use an antiseptic mouth rinse before or after brushing in order to kill the bacteria that form plaque. Many dentists recommend a fluoride containing tooth paste because fluoride has been shown to reduce tooth decay in both children and adults. Many municipalities have added fluoride to the drinking water but many people now drink bottled water which has no fluoride so it is important to use toothpaste that contains fluoride.
Visit the dentist on a regular basis so he can do a complete oral check up in order to find small problems before the small problems turn into big problems. Have teeth cleaned by the dentist or hygienist at least twice a year in order to have plaque removed with professional scrappers. Use a tongue scrapper to clean bacteria from the tongue.
People who think that their bad breath can be cured by chewing gum may or may not be correct in their thinking. Bad breath could be the result of poor gum health and can be remedied by having the gums cleaned by a dental professional. Many people believe that if their gums bleed that they should stop brushing hard.
In fact bleeding gums could be a sign of gum disease and the gums continue to bleed then it is a time to visit the dentist. But hygienists recommend that it is good to make the gums bleed because this allows the gums to release any harmful bacteria. If however the gums continue to bleed for more than three days while brushing then visit the dentist.
Dentists will never discount the importance of dental hygiene because no one can keep his or her teeth and gums too clean. Flossing is the most important step one can take towards good oral health because flossing removes food particles from between the teeth where particles can form bacteria which lead to gum and tooth disease. Of course it is also important to brush twice a day and to visit the dentist at least twice annually.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.massagebyben.com/articles/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites 