healthy teeth: Our teeth are important part of our body that should not be neglected as many do today. It often pains me when I some clients suffering from various tooth problems during the dispensation of my clinical duties whereas these could have been prevented by some simple tips.
Well, here are proper things to treat and prevent tooth problems:
(A). Proper brushing and flossing – the best tooth care:
These are the most important things that you can do to keep your teeth and gums shinny and healthy. Tooth paste contain abrasives, detergents an foaming agents, fluorine –the most common active ingredient in toothpaste, is what prevents cavities. Therefore, you should always be sure your toothpaste contains fluoride.
You need to remove plague – the transparent layer of bacteria that coats the teeth –in turn preventing dental cavities by brushing your teeth twice daily and flossing at least once a day. Brushing also stimulates the gums, which helps to keep them healthy and prevent gum disease called gingivitis.
If you have teeth that are sensitive to heat, cold, and pressure, you may want to try special toothpaste for sensitive. But you will still need to talk to your dentist about your sensitivity because it may be a sign for more serious problem like a cavity or nerve inflammation (irritation).
Tips for proper tooth brushing
As recommended by a dentist friend of mine, Dr. Udefi Joseph and other dentists, the minimum time you should spend brushing your teeth is 2 minutes twice a day and not 45 seconds as most people quickly do. Here are the tips on how to brush properly:
1. Hold your brush at 45o angle against your gum-line. Gently brush from where the tooth and gum meet to the chewing surface in short (about half-a-tooth-wide) strokes. Brushing too hard can result to receding gums, tooth sensitivity, and, over the time, loose teeth. Avoid hard brushes too.
2. Use the same method to brush all outside and inside surfaces of your teeth.
3. To brush the chewing parts/surfaces of your teeth, just use short sweeping strokes, tipping the bristles into the pits and crevices.
4. To clean the inside surfaces of your top and bottom front teeth and gums, hold the brush properly, almost vertical. With back and forth motions bring the front part of the brush over the teeth and gums.
5. Use a forward –sweeping motion, gently brush your tongue and the roof of your mouth to remove the decay-causing bacteria that inhabits these spaces.
6. Use a timer, or play a favorite song while brushing your teeth to get well ex with brushing for a full 2 to 3 minutes. Thanks to God, some electronic toothbrushes have timers that let you know when 2 minutes are exhausted.
(B) Exercise your teeth:
Exercise my teeth? How is that possible? You might be wondering. That is, very simple to do than you imagined. Exercise is good for your entire body system. You can easily exercise your teeth by chewing nuts like palm kernels, tiger nuts and others. This helps to increase blood flow within the living part of the teeth, even the muscles of the mouth like the buccinators and this generally improves the condition of your teeth and gums.
(C) Mind your diet:
Eating sugary foods as you probably already known, is a major cause of tooth decay. However, it’s not just how much sugar you consume –when and how you eat it can be as important to keeping your teeth healthy.
When you consume sugary foods or drink sodas frequently throughout the day, the enamel that protects your teeth is constantly exposed to acids.
Cough syrups, hard candies and breath mints that contain sugar are especially harmful because they dissolve slowly in your mouth. Many experts or dentists recommend that you take a 3-hours break between eating foods containing sugar.
Note that sugary or starchy food eaten with a meal are less harmful to your teeth than when they are eaten alone, possibly because the production of saliva, which washes away the sugar and bacteria, is increased. Therefore, eating sugary items before you go to bed can be the most damaging especially if you don’t brush your teeth afterward because you don’t produce sufficient saliva when you sleep unless you are the drooling type.
Well, I understand that most people find it hard to cut out sweets completely. It is therefore, good to try these more realistic guidelines:
1. Eat carbohydrates (sugars and starches) with a meal.
2. If you brush your teeth after eating, rinse your mouth very well with water or mouthwash or chew sugarless gum.
3. Quit eating sugary foods between meals.
4. If you snack, eat non-sugary foods such as cheese, popcorn, raw veggies, or yogurt.
(D) Avoid too cold or too hot foods:
Neither of too cold nor too hot foods is good for maintaining the optimum health of your teeth. It is very vital to avoid them and embrace warm foods; even nature teaches us the right thing to do by always maintain the optimum temperature of the body by homeostasis.
Avoid smoking and too alcoholic intake:
These have detrimental effects not only to your teeth but also your entire body. Find out more below:
1. What alcohol does to your body?
2. Effects of smoking on your effects and benefits of smoking.
(E) Regular dental checkup:
Dentists are specialists in the care of teeth and treatment of several tooth problems. Having regular checkup is the best antidote for mouth odour and other mouth-related problems. It can help you treat and prevent tooth decay, gum disease, and other disorders that put the health of your teeth and mouth at risk.
Going to dentist regularly –at least every 6 month –is very preventive and you know that prevention they say is better than cure. Therefore, get the service of good dentist now and follow his or her instructions given to you like taking your prescribed medications and abstaining for any lifestyle that exposes your health to danger.
How to cure Bad breath /mouth odour
Bad breath also called halitosis can be a major problem especially when you’re about snuggles with your sweetie or whisper a joke to your friend. The good news here is that bad breath can often be prevented or cured with simple tips.
Bad breath is caused by odour-producing bacteria that grow in the mouth. Whenever you don’t brush and floss regularly, the bacteria accumulate on the bits of food lift in your mouth and between your healthy teeth. And the sulphur compounds released by these bacteria make your breath smell.
Certain foods especially garlic, and onions containing pungent oils, can contribute to bad breath since the oils are carried to your lungs and out through your mouth. Similarly, a smoking and alcohol are major cause of bad breath.
Natural cure for mouth odour
Apart from proper brushing and flossing and use of medications (mouth wash), this can help cure or reduce mouth odour.
Summary /conclusion
I believe that I’ve digested all the measures needed to achieve healthy teeth, cure mouth odour and laugh easily in public, or even kiss your partner because mouth odour is arrested. I therefore, urge you to follow these guidelines for your good and I hope to hear that the health of your teeth has improved drastically.
Thanks for reading. Don’t hesitate to share to your friends and family.