Oral diseases affect nearly 3.5 billion people around the globe. In fact, untreated tooth decay is one of the most common health conditions worldwide. If you want to maintain a healthy smile, you need to prioritize oral hygiene this year.
Otherwise, oral diseases could leave you vulnerable to complications, including periodontal disease or oral cancer. Your risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes could increase as well.
Here are a few tips you can use to improve your smile this year. With these tips, you can start grinning without fear of oral health conditions or complications.
Read on to discover how to maintain healthy teeth today!
Maintain Consistency
In order to maintain a whiter, healthier smile, you need to prioritize oral hygiene long-term. It’s not enough to pick up these habits before your next dental appointment. Instead, you need to make sure brushing and flossing are a part of your regular routine.
Make sure to brush your teeth twice a day. Floss before bed to get rid of plaque and food particles, too.
Otherwise, plaque can start to build up against your teeth. This clear, sticky film can encourage bacteria to spread within your mouth.
The digestive acids from plaque and bacteria can eat away at your tooth enamel, leading to tooth decay.
Brushing every morning and night will clear away food particles and plaque. Otherwise, the plaque will harden into tartar. You’ll need to visit your Georgetown hygienist to have tartar professionally removed.
Don’t forget to floss your teeth as well. Otherwise, food particles and plaque can hide in places your toothbrush can’t reach.
Neglecting to brush and floss can increase your risk of tooth decay and gum disease. Gum disease can increase your risk of cardiovascular problems and other oral health conditions.
Maintaining long-term consistency can help you manage healthy teeth and a beautiful smile.
Adjust Your Diet
You are what you eat! Your diet can have a major impact on your oral health as well.
Try to eat crunchy, healthy fruits and vegetables like apples and carrots. In addition to providing your body with helpful nutrients, these foods can also boost saliva production. Saliva can help clear plaque and bacteria away.
Try to minimize your intake of sugary snack foods, crackers, or acidic treats. These foods can encourage plaque production and tooth decay.
Otherwise, try adding more calcium to your diet with yogurt and cheese.
Dairy products can provide your body with the healthy minerals it needs for strong teeth.
Drink Water
It’s not enough to maintain a healthy diet. You need to make sure you’re hydrating your body, too.
Try to minimize your intake of sugary soft drinks, coffee, tea, and sweetened caffeinated beverages. Otherwise, the sugar can eat away at your protective tooth enamel. Coffee, tea, and wine can dull your bright, white smile, too.
For a healthier smile, make sure you’re drinking water throughout the day.
Water will help wash away the sugars that are clinging to your teeth before plaque can form. It can also keep your body hydrated before flushing out harmful toxins.
Consider Your Tools
The tools you start using can improve your smile, too.
First, consider upgrading your current toothbrush to an electric brush. An electric brush can help clear away more bacteria and plaque.
Some brushes even use a smartphone app to ensure you’re reaching every nook and cranny.
If you’re struggling to use floss, consider using floss picks this year instead. Floss picks can help you floss thoroughly to ensure you remove food particles from between your teeth.
Consider adding some sugar-free gum to your bag. Sugar-free gum is helpful when you can’t brush your teeth right away. You can increase the saliva in your mouth to clear away bacteria.
Focus on Fluoride
Take a look at the toothpaste and mouthwash you’re using, too. Consider using options that feature fluoride.
Fluoride can help strengthen your protective tooth enamel. It could help reverse tooth decay that’s in its early stages, too. You could reduce the need for fillings and expensive treatments as a result.
Stop Smoking
It’s not enough to limit your sugar intake if you want to maintain healthy teeth. You might need to consider the bad habits that are impacting your smile, too.
For example, smoking can stain your teeth before soaking deep into your protective tooth enamel. Smoking can impact your gum health as well. Your gums might begin to recede, making your teeth appear larger.
Smoking might make it more difficult for you to reverse gum disease with treatment, too.
Try to stop biting down on hard candies and non-food items (fingernails, pen caps, etc.). Otherwise, you might damage your teeth.
Consider Your Health
If you want a healthy smile, try to improve other areas of your health as well. For example, conditions that might impact the appearance of your smile include:
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Bruxism
If your body is strained due to one condition, you might find it’s more difficult to treat another.
Improve your overall health by eating right, drinking water, getting enough sleep, and exercising. Making these lifestyle changes could improve your smile, teeth, and gums.
Schedule Appointments
Nearly 100% of adults have at least one dental cavity. Between 15 and 20% of adults between 35 and 44 years of age have severe gum disease. Meanwhile, 30% of people ages 65 to 74 worldwide don’t have any natural teeth left.
If you’re skipping appointments, you could put your oral health at risk.
You might not realize there’s a problem with your teeth until the issue has developed over time. Routine appointments can help you stop oral health conditions from progressing.
For example, your local dentist might spot the signs of tooth decay or gum disease before you do. Then, you can begin treatment in a timely manner.
Schedule an appointment every six months. If you have specific concerns, talk to your Georgetown dentist. They might recommend you visit more often to prioritize your oral hygiene.
Get a Healthy Smile With Help From Your Georgetown Dentist
Maintaining a healthy smile doesn’t have to feel difficult or time-consuming. Instead, prioritize your oral health using these simple tips. With a consistent plan, you can improve your smile and start grinning with ease.
Don’t forget to schedule routine appointments with your local dentist!
Ready to book your next appointment? We can’t wait to see you.
Reach out today to get started.