While we recommend that patients brush and floss daily, they may wonder how much brushing they should do during each session. That is a good question, as you don’t want to avoid brushing, nor do you want to overdo it. The following information can help you maintain a routine brushing and flossing schedule without concern.

What Time Limit Should I Place on Brushing My Teeth?

When you brush your teeth, you should always use a soft bristle brush or an electronic toothbrush with a soft brush head. Plan on spending about two minutes on the activity. You may spend a little bit longer if you have teeth that are hard to reach and clean. The whole idea is to correctly brush your teeth. Therefore, the time you spend (about two minutes) will be time well-spent. When you brush your teeth, place your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle against the gums. Gently move in a back and forth motion, making sure the strokes cover teeth. You should brush the outer surfaces, inside surfaces, and chewing areas of the teeth. Don’t leave any part unbrushed.

Why the Two-minute Time Limit?

Dental professionals have determined that two minutes is an adequate amount of time for cleaning all areas of the teeth. Also, when you brush, don’t forget to include the tongue. The tongue holds bacteria that can cause halitosis. In addition, you should never rinse immediately with water after you brush your teeth. Doing so will strip away the effects of the fluoride. Instead, merely spit out the additional toothpaste. That way, you can ensure that the toothpaste will do its job. In fact, leaving some of the toothpaste residue on your teeth overnight will provide a protective coating while you sleep.

If you would like to schedule a professional cleaning and exam, we can arrange a time that is convenient for you. Make sure you continue to brush and floss to maintain a healthy smile. See us every six months to support good dental health and prevent any serious dental problems.

Should you really brush your teeth before you go to bed at night? We believe it is important to clean your teeth before you go to bed, as a lot can happen in eight hours, or when you are sleeping. Not only can bacteria and plaque accumulate on the teeth, it can lead to the formation of tartar and decay. That is why we believe brushing before bedtime should be done regularly.

How Brushing Is Helpful

When you brush your teeth before you go to sleep, you prevent the buildup of plaque, which leads to gum disease and cavities. If you tend to have problems with cavities or gum disease, we suggest that you brush after dinner and again before you go to sleep at night. To make sure your tooth brushing routine works well, you need to use good form when you brush. Begin by brushing the outside tooth surfaces, using short back-and-forth motions. Follow, in the same way on the inside teeth. Next, brush the chewing surfaces. To brush the back of your front teeth, apply the tip of your toothbrush, gently using and up-and-down stroke.

Some Tips that Will Make Your Brushing Routine More Successful

If you have problem with manual dexterity or you want to ensure you clean all your teeth, you might consider using an electric toothbrush. Usually, this type of dental aid removes dental plaque more effectively than a manual style brush. Use a brush that is comfortable to hold and simple to use. The electric brush head should feature a rotating-oscillating movement. Also, always floss before you go to bed. Doing so will reduce the accumulation of plaque overnight. If the plaque hardens, it can turn into tartar, which can only be removed with a professional prophylaxis or cleaning. We suggest you floss in the morning too. Follow up brushing and flossing by rinsing your mouth with an antibacterial mouthwash or a mouth rinse that contains fluoride.

Whether you need pointers for brushing your teeth or schedule a cleaning or exam, we are here to provide you with the dental support you need. Contact us today with any inquiries you may have and to schedule a consultation, if you have not done so already with our office. We can answer any dental questions you may have.

While brushing, flossing and rinsing your mouth out with an approved mouth rinse daily is the best way to preserve your oral health, every aspect of your life affects your oral health in one way or another. Even something as seemingly unrelated as your vaccinations can influence the health of your mouth throughout your life. By staying up to date on your vaccinations you can help keep your mouth healthier and reduce some oral-health issues as well.

Updating Your Vaccinations Can Keep Your Mouth Healthy

Failing to get important vaccinations throughout your childhood and into adulthood can leave your body more susceptible to preventable infections and diseases. Many of these diseases can compromise your mouth as well as other areas of your body. The HPV vaccination is an excellent example of this. Vaccinating yourself against HPV helps protect you against oral infections and prevents you from developing cancer later in life as well.

How the HPV Vaccine Can Make a Difference

Without the HPV vaccine you are at a greater risk for developing oral HPV infections and mouth cancers as a result. By getting these vaccines you can reduce your risk and help protect your mouth against these infections. The HPV vaccine is targeted toward teenagers, but even adults up to the age of 45 can benefit from getting the vaccine.

While the HPV virus is one of the most compelling examples of how getting vaccinated can protect your mouth, most diseases will hurt your immune system and leave your mouth open to developing health issues. That’s why being vaccinated gives you the upper hand and helps you maintain good oral health. Not sure about the state of your oral health or just looking to maintain good health levels? Come and see us at our office today and we’ll help keep your mouth in good shape.

Scuba diving is a well-loved activity around the world, but many people participating in the hobby are unwittingly damaging their teeth without realizing they’re at risk until it’s too late. As it turns out scuba diving is bad for teeth for a number of different reasons. Taking one trip down underwater could leave you with broken teeth, an uncomfortable jaw and other mouth-related problems.

How Scuba Diving Puts Pressure on Teeth

Scuba diving is a unique activity that combines dry air, high pressure levels and an odd breathing mask together to create potential dental problems. The dry air can dry out your gums and lead to increased bacterial growth while lowering oral health. Scuba diving also puts your body down at higher pressure levels, which puts pressure on your teeth as well. With already fractured teeth you could suffer from broken teeth during the dive because of that pressure.

All the pressure that’s present on your body while diving down to depths of 50 or 100 feet isn’t great for your teeth as it is, but diving also creates air pockets under your teeth and can cause participants to bite down on the breathing regulator. This is especially common in new divers. Together, the high pressure, air pockets and irregular jaw clenching leads to discomfort and tooth damage very frequently.

There aren’t any dental requirements for you to go scuba diving. That means you could go underwater with already damaged teeth and crack them or cause other damage to your mouth without realizing the risk is even there. That’s why we want everyone to know what the risks are and also why we encourage people to come in to see us before heading down underwater for the first time. Get your teeth evaluated and make sure your mouth is ready for the strain that scuba diving will put on it.

We have heard all of the sayings about what happens when you get older. There are a lot of misconceptions about aging. One of the biggest misconceptions about aging is that you lose your teeth and you have to wear dentures.

However, just because you are aging doesn’t mean your teeth have to suffer. Here is some information about how to age gracefully with a beautiful smile.

Dental Maintenance

One way that you can keep your smile beautiful no matter what your age is to continue to brush and floss your teeth twice a day, every day. Brushing and flossing your teeth helps to prevent tooth decay and gum disease. More people lose their teeth due to tooth decay and gum disease than for any other reason. You can also help your teeth and gums by eating a balanced diet as well.

You can also maintain your smile through regular dental cleanings. When you visit us twice a year, we not only clean your teeth beautifully, we can also look for signs of potential trouble down the road. We can spot the beginning stages of gum disease, for example. That means that we can treat your gum disease before it becomes a problem.

Whiter Teeth

One way to have an ageless smile is to make sure your teeth are white. Use a whitening toothpaste and mouthwash. A white smile actually makes you look younger. If toothpaste and mouthwash aren’t enough, you may want to try Whitestrips. You can also come in and let us whiten your teeth for you.

Avoid drinking a lot of caffeine and using tobacco products. Caffeine and tobacco can be bad for you, and they can also cause your teeth to yellow prematurely. Do you want an ageless smile? We can help. Give us a call and let us make you an appointment to get your teeth white as can be.