Tips for At-Home Care
Daily Brushing
Brush your teeth at least twice a day. The brushing removes food particles that are stuck to your teeth. In addition, the fluoride in toothpaste helps restore enamel structures that have been weakened due to mechanical stress and decay. And, you ensure you’ll have a fresh breath all day.
Floss Daily
Flossing is too important to only do before and after visiting the dentist. When you eat, food particles and plaque build up in places that a toothbrush cannot reach. Proper flossing techniques can be found here.
Manage Diet
People often forget that the mouth plays a huge role in digestion, breaking up food into bits that your stomach can further process. That being said, the teeth feel the brunt of just about everything you eat. Therefore, being mindful of the foods you eat is an important aspect of preventative dentistry. A diet composed of simple sugars from candy and starchy foods impact teeth because those simple sugars stick to teeth and provide a platform upon which plaque forms.
If you have orthodontic or prosthetic treatments appliances such as braces or crowns, a diet that avoids sticky or hard foods that can damage these treatments is important and cost-effective.
Visit Your Dentist Often
Visiting your dentist regularly for maintenance enables hygienists to clean away plaque and calculus, that cannot be cleaned by regular brushing and flossing. Dr. Zane and his team will also be able to identify oral health issues before they become more serious, and more costly.