Improve Dental Heath with Good Care
Cleaning the spaces between your teeth and along your gums with dental floss is as important to your oral health as cleaning your teeth with a toothbrush. Just like you brush your teeth every day, flossing should be part of your daily routine. The floss will help remove food particles that have wedged between your teeth throughout the day, or night. If the particles are not removed, they can lead to cavities between your teeth. It is important to come in for regular dental examinations so we can inspect the teeth, gums, and your mouth. We can also take x-rays at your appointment. This helps to determine if a cavity is starting to form between your teeth. Having the cavity fixed at the first sign can help prevent further issues and a costly bill in the future.
The Benefits of Flossing your Teeth
There are many benefits to regularly flossing your teeth. Dental floss can help clear food debris and plaque from the spaces between your teeth, where your toothbrush cannot reach. As a result, flossing helps prevent gum or periodontal diseases, tooth decay, and bad breath. There are certain things to keep in mind to get the most out of flossing. Use dental floss or an interdental cleaner every day. Also make sure you floss at least once a day. When you floss, be gentle when using dental floss so you avoid damaging gum tissue. If long threads of regular dental floss are too hard for you to hold, use a floss holder.
Cleaning Products that you can Use
When purchasing dental products, there are a wide variety you can choose between. This includes waxed or un-waxed dental floss. Also Interdental cleaning aids like picks and special sticks are an option. Oral irrigators, which use water to remove plaque caught between teeth are another option. Both waxed and un-waxed dental floss work well to clean the spaces between your teeth. If the spaces are tight, waxed floss may glide more easily between them. Flossing every day is more important to your oral health than which floss you choose. Any floss that slips easily between teeth without hurting and damaging the gums is the floss you should use. A floss holder or other interdental cleaning tool may be helpful if you have trouble handling long pieces of floss due to arthritis, vision difficulties, or discomfort, but you must follow instructions or ask us how to use them properly so you don’t hurt your gums.
Other Products that you can Use
Oral irrigators can help remove food caught between your teeth as well. They should not replace dental floss and brushing. Likewise, most mouthwashes will not do an effective job of keeping your mouth healthy on their own. Many are used simply to cover up breath odor, although some over-the-counter fluoride mouth rinses approved by the ADA can help prevent decay, and some anti-gingivitis or anti-plaque mouth rinses can help fight periodontal diseases. Make sure to contact us if you are not sure what type of mouthwash you should use.