So now that you have decided that you would like to take care of yourself and have a beautiful smile, let take the next step! What are some truths and “ideas” that can help you keep Healthy?
1. Oral health does not affect the rest of your body.
If there is one thing that you remember from this blog is “Your mouth in the window to your body” or “You are what you eat” or” Happy Mouth, Happy Body” I don’t care which catchy phrase you want to use. Pick one. Just remember this: You oral health will affect your overall health. To help you understand, when you have too much plaque in your mouth due to lack of oral hygiene, that plaque just grows and grows. It contains a type of bacteria that causes inflammation. Inflammation by definition is a protective tissue response to injury or Destruction of tissue. So the first sign is red and swollen gums. Then the bleeding starts. Bleeding is your body sending white blood cells( let’s call them soldiers) to fight the infection. When you swallow this yucky bacteria filled plaque on a daily basis, that bacteria starts to cause inflammation in your arteries. What does that cause? High blood pressure, heart disease and stroke are soon to follow. There are doctors and heart surgeons who have come to the conclusion that inflammation is what is killing us! So now you see the connection
2. You need to brush twice a day.
This is very true. But to be even more accurate you need to brush every time your teeth come in contact with acidic food. The reason we say twice a day is because you need to at least brush in the morning and before you get your beauty sleep. When you are sleeping your saliva slows down, actually it just stops and it is a free for all for the bacteria in your mouth. Most decay and damage happens when you are asleep. But if you can also brush after lunch and after snacks your smile will love you!
3. The PH level in your mouth affect your ability to fight cavities.
This is so cool. I recently studied the information on acidity and alkalinity and its effects on your mouth as well as your body. This is the way it works. You body/mouth was meant to have a constant ph level of 7.3, slightly alkaline. For those of you who don’t remember what I am talking about, think back to 6 grade chemistry class where you learned about the ph scale. The ph scale goes from 1 to 14, with 1 being very acidic and 14 being very alkaline. The ph of great healthy water is 7, which is the happy medium. When you eat sugary and/or junk food you lower you ph to 2 to 3. Not good. When your mouth is acidic, the bacteria multiply and do a happy dance on your teeth and leave holes. When you body is acidic you get diseases, get fat and die a slow death. Vegetables and some fruits are alkaline and are good for you! Stay away from soda (soda is battery acid for your teeth and bones), power drinks and candy. Drink water (VERY neutralizing) after snacks and meals. There are sweeteners (yes, I said sweeteners) like xylitol that can actually raise your ph levels. Call me at the office and I can give you more information.
4. You need to floss
No you don’t. You just need to floss the teeth you want to keep. Flossing and interdental cleaning is the only way you are going to get rid of the junk between your teeth. If you don’t floss yesterday’s breakfast, lunch and dinner is left behind and it sits for days just rotting. Then it causes your gums to bleed and the blood starts to rot and causes pockets around your teeth. After the plaque has been left it start a hole in your tooth and it starts to hurt. The plaque/blood mixture starts to destroy the bone around your teeth. Pretty soon your teeth get wriggly. The mouth is a cesspool of bacteria and stench and the jaw bone gives up the fight and the teeth go bye-bye! You are left with a Beverly hilly-Billy grin (no offense to the show or the people on the show!) Enough said! Floss Already! Like Nike says, “Just Do It!” It is amazing that people complain how expense dentistry is and how uncomfortable in can be (not in our office!), but they won’t pick up the two dollar spool of floss and do their mouth a favor! If you are not sure if you are doing is correctly, come on in and pay us a visit! We are the flossing specialist!
5. You can have whiter teeth.
You know you want to ask…. How do I get a whiter smile? There are so many options and all of them are totally doable. If you are a Type A personality and you are getting married today, there is the office laser whitener. Depending on your teeth it can get your teeth super white, but so can the take home method. The office chair side method is just faster. If you can deal with whitening 30 minutes a day for two weeks, then the tray method in the number one way to whiten. This is how I have whitened my teeth. For those of you who have seen my smile, they are white! You can have the same results with take home tray whitening. We also have a premade tray method that is effective, but I can’t say that I would guarantee results. It is similar to Crest white strips, which can be a hit or miss. If you are not ready to whiten yet, stay away from the following things: Smoking (duh!), black tea, coffee, red wine, blackberries, blueberries, cherries or anything that would stain a white carpet.
Please come see us at Contemporary General Dentistry! We WILL get you on the right track. Dentistry in fun! We’ll show you!
Smiles create Happiness!
Create Yours!
By Contemporary General Dentistry
May 31, 2013
