Many people have a rather rudimentary view of what it takes to have healthy teeth. Simply brush your teeth every day, see your dentist regularly and follow their instructions, and you’ll be fine. This is fine starter advice, but part of taking good care of your teeth, and health in general, is being proactive rather than reactive. There are a lot of different things that you can do in order to take care of your teeth, as well as some things you may not know about.
For one thing, along with your brushing, there are a few complimentary things you can do right along with your brushing to help things out. The main thing to do is flossing, but you also want to brush different parts of your mouth that also play a major role in your oral health. For example, brushing your tongue helps with your breath as well as keeping bad bacteria out of your mouth. Your gums are also extremely important, as neglecting these can lead to bacterial buildup that can harm even healthy teeth. This is especially important for people who are getting older. With aging, the gums tend to recede. This opens up a new surface for plaque to develop. Don’t forget to use a mouthwash gargle as well. Again, this helps freshen your breath while dealing with bacteria.
One thing that’s becoming a lot more popular in the health world in general is using natural products and supplements along with living well and practicing good health habits. Most people don’t associate this with oral health, but there are some things that you can do to help. For starters, the practice of oil pulling, despite the title, is a relatively easy and non-invasive way to help your teeth. Commonly practiced historically in India, this basically involves taking something like coconut oil or sesame oil and swishing it around in your mouth. This is generally done to help alleviate pain as well as for generally getting rid of bacteria. Just make sure not to swallow, as the taste can be pretty strong.
In addition, probiotic foods can be surprisingly useful. A lot of the time, bacteria in the mouth isn’t just about clearing out the bad ones, but also adding some good ones. Foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, and even certain pickles can bring some balance.
This leads into the greater impact of diet on your oral health as well. No matter how much you brush, a constant bombardment of sweet and acidic foods is going to have an impact on your teeth. You don’t have to give these up completely, but they need to be minimized. Another good thing to consider is eating foods rich in certain nutrients that are proven to be good for your teeth, like calcium.
Equally important, though, is understanding what you need to do when some of these techniques aren’t enough. For example, while good dental habits and natural options are ideal for helping keep your teeth in good general health, they’re not as effective when it comes to helping deal with decay or damage that may already be done. In addition, there are many situations that may end up with people losing teeth through no fault of their own, like injury or accidents. When it comes to situations like these, cosmetic dentistry is a good way to handle the issue.
According to Lucio Persichetti, a dentist in Canton MI, “Simply put, getting cosmetic dentistry can be life changing. In fact, a recent study in Dentistry Today found that many people despise their smiles, with nearly 80 percent reporting that they believe their teeth made them look unattractive.”
The nice thing about cosmetic dentistry is the general variety of things that you have to match your situation and budget. For example, if you have a broken or damaged tooth but money is a concern, you may want to look into bonding. Here, the dentist creates a resin piece molded to match the area of missing tooth, that is then applied to the area. To the untrained eye, this resembles a tooth. For people who have teeth in good condition, but discoloration, whitening may make more sense.
As a final point, some people have more extreme needs when it comes to cosmetic dentistry, like a tooth or several teeth that have been knocked out or fallen out. Here, dental implants may make more sense. To get one of these, your dentist will put an implant surgically either on or in the jawbone. At this point, the dentist will put on a fake tooth in order to be the visible portion of the implant.