It’s hard to resist that grin. This is a very appealing quality of yours. However, some things might harm your teeth—subpar oral hygiene practices. Plus, you won’t believe what happens afterward.
The majority of people do not practice good dental hygiene. Consistent dental care is essential for healthy teeth and gums. However, it’s up to you to maintain a healthy smile at home with proper dental hygiene.
When it comes to teeth and gums, good brushing technique matters. We compiled this list of toothbrushing faux pas to help people avoid them.
1. Wrong Brush
What should you do if the shop carries an overwhelming number of brushes from which to choose? Dr. Kimberly Harms, a dentist in Farmington, Minnesota, recommends to her patients that they make sure the bristles of their toothbrushes reach trouble regions.
This encompasses the whole region that can be cleaned thoroughly with a toothbrush. It may be an electronic toothbrush, or it might be a manual one. But Harms is adamant that there is one rule that may under no circumstances be breached. “That’s the one thing we insist on,” she says, emphasizing the need to use a brush with soft bristles.
To provide a thorough cleaning under the gum, the bristles of the toothbrush should be bendable. If you have a tiny mouth, the size of the brush’s head is of the utmost importance. There is a large variety of diameters available for handles, and the meetings may be slanted in several ways. Some can bend in peculiar ways, while others are unable to.
2. You Rip Your Teeth
Brushing too vigorously is counterproductive. The fact that individuals strive too hard to clean their teeth is a significant problem, in my opinion.
They think they’re not doing a good job unless they attack the teeth as they would the grout in their bathroom tile, says Fairview Park, Ohio dentist Dr. Matt Messina. Plaque is pliable and easy to remove.
Teamemergencydental.com advises against vigorous brushing. “This problem can be solved by replacing the word “scrub” with “massage,” which removes the mental hurdle of “scrub” and “scrub brush.”
3. You Rush
Two minutes twice a day is the minimum amount of time you should spend brushing. Unfortunately, you now have to worry about being tardy to class or work. Maybe you’re tired and ready for bed. You have to shorten your brushing sessions from time to time.
Don’t.
Messina recalls that they once recommended using an “egg timer” or something like that. However, these days nearly everyone carries a tiny miracle, the mobile phone. Setting a timer for two minutes is a terrific idea.
A lot of young people are taking headphones everywhere, she explains. You can put on a song with your headphones on and listen to it for two or three minutes on average. You know you’ve been in there long enough if you can listen to a whole song as you brush your teeth.
4. Using An Inappropriate Toothpaste
Unfortunately, the greater functionality of modern toothpaste comes at the price of your teeth and gums, leading to tooth decay and gum disease.
The abrasive chemicals and textures used in teeth whitening solutions can wear away the enamel on your teeth, making them look considerably darker than they already are. Choose a toothpaste that is as mild and natural as possible, if you can.
5. Lack of Tongue Cleanliness
The tongue is a region ideal for the growth of bacteria, and consequently, it is frequently the cause of foul breath. After cleaning your teeth, use a tongue scraper to remove any leftover food from your tongue or touch your tongue directly. If you do this, the number of bacteria that dwell in your mouth will reduce and hence the amount of bad breath you have.
6. Incorrect Brushing Method and Motion
It would help if you brushed your teeth using circular strokes rather than traveling back and forth between your teeth. Use circular motions while cleaning the areas between your teeth for the most thorough and least invasive clean possible. The toothbrush’s bristles must make contact with the gums and the teeth.
Please avoid pounding on it and instead go for a more careful touch. When you brush your teeth too aggressively from side to side, you run the danger of causing damage to the delicate tissue that lines your gums and teeth.
Make modest rolling strokes with only the front part of the brush, and slant the meeting vertically behind the front and bottom teeth as you work your way around the mouth. When you clean your teeth, you should never brush them with such force that the bristles touch your teeth.
7. Misaligned Toothbrush
The brushes should be maintained at an angle of 45 degrees, and the strokes should be kept as short and circular as possible. This is the most effective method for performing a comprehensive cleaning. Because of the angle at which the bristles are positioned, a thorough cleaning may be achieved both above and below the gum line.
Make sure to use the bristles in the middle of the toothbrush to clean between your teeth and the gum line. Cleaning the area surrounding the gums can help avoid discoloration, but more importantly, it can help prevent cavities and gum disease. Some toothbrushes include bristles that are angled precisely for this purpose.
8. Keeping Your Current Toothbrushing Habits
Brushing one’s teeth is so ingrained in one’s habit that it is primarily performed subconsciously. It’s easy to get into the habit of cleaning only some areas of our teeth while ignoring the rest of them when we should be brushing them thoroughly. To liven up the situation, switch things up by traveling in a different direction.
It will prevent you from being too lazy to complete the entire process of cleaning your teeth with your toothbrush. Using an electric toothbrush provides several advantages, one of which is the ease with which you can guide it to clean any part of your mouth without making any additional physical effort.