Preventive Dentistry Rules!
We all know that prevention is better than a cure but what does prevention mean as far as your teeth are concerned?
Put simple prevention is the best way to keep your teeth healthy for as long as you need them. The advantages of that should be obvious but include having your own teeth and smile, less pain, far fewer dental procedures (nobody really likes having dental treatment do they?), far cheaper than repeated complicated dental procedures like root fillings, crowns or implants and overall better health.
So what’s the downside to prevention – well there isn’t one really. All it takes is a bit of regular effort to keep your teeth and gums healthy but the benefits are huge for your health and your pocket. So how should you look after your teeth?
Preventing decay.
Decay happens when sugar mixes with plaque on your teeth. Plaque is the thin layer that builds up constantly on your teeth and is removed by brushing. Plaque is made up of bacteria that mix with sugar in food or drink and make acid. It is this acid that softens and decays teeth. Every time you have something to eat or drink that contains sugar your teeth are bathed in acid for around 45 minutes, making them slowly decay. If you take lots of sugary food or drinks during the day your teeth will have lots of these acid attacks making you much more likely to get cavities. So the first step in prevention is to keep sugary foods and drinks to meal times only. If you can keep any snacks or drinks between meals free of sugar then you are more than halfway to never getting tooth decay again!
Using a toothpaste that contains fluoride will help to strengthen your teeth so they can resist decay better. Brushing twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste helps to remove the plaque that makes the acid so toothbrushing with fluoride toothpastes have a double benefit. Most toothpastes these days contain fluoride so they are easy to find but the right amount of fluoride should be used. Children’s toothpastes contain less fluoride so it is important to choose the right toothpaste for the right age of child.
Occasionally, where the risk of decay is high, your dentist may apply extra fluoride to the surfaces of your teeth or recommend that you use a mouthwash that contains extra fluoride.
Preventing gum disease
Gum disease is caused by plaque that builds up on teeth and infects the gums and the bone that holds the teeth in place.
If plaque is left on teeth for longer than 24 hours without being cleaned off it begins to harden into tartar (or calculus to give it its proper name). Initially the gums become red and swollen but they are usually not painful. When teeth are brushed the gums bleed easily because they are fragile. In fact sometimes they will bleed when you bite into food or even start bleeding spontaneously. All of these are a sign of gum disease!
In the first stages of gym disease, known as gingivitis, the gum infection is only in the gum that surrounds the teeth and covers the bone that anchors the teeth in place. However, if the infection is not treated, the disease can begin to infect the bone that holds the teeth in place. This is called periodontal disease and, if it is left untreated the bone can become so damaged that the teeth become loose and eventually fall out. With gum disease there is usually very little pain until it is very advanced and the teeth become loose. At this stage often the only treatment is to take teeth out so prevention is definitely better than a cure!
So how do we prevent gum disease? The key is remove plaque from the surfaces of teeth every day so it is never allowed to settle and make the gums infected. The best way to clean your teeth is with toothbrushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste to clean the tooth surfaces that are easy to get at. But toothbrushing alone is not enough because a toothbrush can’t reach in between the teeth to clean these areas. Since the areas in between the teeth are most at risk of gum disease it is important that these areas are cleaned properly too. The best way to clean between the teeth is with floss or interdental brushes – there are lots of varieties available. This interdental cleaning should be done at least once a day.
Along with good toothbrushing and interdental cleaning, regular visits to your dentist and hygienist are very important to check the health of your gums. Because gum disease is not painful it is often only your dentist or hygienist who will be able tell you how healthy your gums are.
Recent research also links more severe types of gum disease with general health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, strokes and Alzheimer’s disease. So looking after your teeth and gums can help keep your whole body healthy too.
