Surprisingly, there are still many thousands of people in this country who are still entirely unaware of the supreme importance of oral hygiene.
Even more importantly, you and your family should also know of the many mild, moderate and even potentially life-threatening health conditions caused by poor oral care.
In an effort to help, here is oral health and hygiene: 101.
Improve Your Brushing Routine
You should, at a minimum, be brushing your teeth (ideally with an electric toothbrush, as they can reach more surface area than a manual one) for at least two minutes twice a day.
It is important to stick to this routine even if you arrive home late and just want to climb into bed or you have an early meeting and go to bed early. What is more, you should also use a high-quality mouthwash.
Even the most expensive and impressive electric toothbrush cannot reach inside the minute gaps between your teeth, especially the smaller ones at the back of your mouth, which is why you should also be flossing, either with a line of floss or a floss stick, at least once a day.
Stop Smoking
You do not need this article to tell you that smoking cigarettes is unequivocally, exceedingly bad for you, and, as such, should you smoke, you should make it a priority to stop as soon as possible.
Smoking is also harmful to your teeth, as it not only causes the surface of the teeth to become yellow and dirty-looking, but nicotine stains are impossible to remove. What is more, smokers’ teeth attract considerably more plaque too.
Always Investigate Tooth Pain
Perhaps the back tooth in the corner of your mouth usually causes you no problems whatsoever, and then all of a sudden, you wake up with a painful throbbing in the gum beneath it?
Alternatively, you simply consider yourself too busy to book a dental appointment, preferring instead to self-medicate an almost constant dull ache in your mouth.
Regardless of the frequency of the pain and how much it hurts, it is always important to investigate tooth pain and book an appointment with a dentist, such as northwickmanordental.co.uk, who will be able to ascertain the cause behind the pain and provide treatment for it.
Watch What You Drink (and Eat)!
Nobody would blame you if you love nothing more than an ice-cold can of fizzy pop on a morning, and indeed, the majority of people in the UK and beyond favour fizzy drinks over plain water or diluted cordials.
However, fizzy drinks, even the diet ones, are incredibly damaging to your teeth, and this is why it is important to not only limit the number of fizzy drinks you consume on an average day but also to consume the can in one go rather than sipping the drink over an hour or more.
Finally, you should also look to limit the number of sugary foods you eat, such as sweets, chocolate, cakes and biscuits, as the specific type of bacteria contained within dental plaque is turned into acid and corrodes the surface of the teeth.
