Your oral hygiene is a key indicator of not only your existing, but also your future oral health. The creation of a healthy oral hygiene routine at a young age, and the continuation of this routine into adulthood, will play a huge role in ensuring in the health and aesthetics of your teeth in years to come, as well as how often and how invasive your dentist visits are likely to be.
What is a Healthy Oral Hygiene Routine?
A healthy oral hygiene routine is a combination of a good at-home regime, and regular visits to the dentist for professional cleans and hygiene services.
Your at-home routine should focus on:
- Brushing: You need to brush your teeth twice a day, in the morning and before bed. Brushing your teeth helps to remove plaque, stains and bacteria and safeguards your teeth, mouth and gums from infection and decay. You need to brush every section of your teeth, as well as using the brush to clean your tongue, gums and cheeks. A proper brushing motion involves moving the brush around in small, circular motions without pushing too hard. If you brush your teeth too hard you can wear away the enamel of your teeth and cause your gum line to recede.
- Flossing: Flossing is vital in removing food particles and bacteria from in-between your teeth. A tooth brush cannot access these points and there is clear correlation between tooth decay and gum disease and a lack of flossing. You only need to floss once a day and the best time to floss is at night just before bed. Don’t be alarmed if your gums bleed a little when you first start flossing, you should only be concerned if this lasts more than a couple of weeks.
- Diet and Lifestyle: Your diet plays a big part in your oral hygiene. Smoking and excessive alcohol consumption can damage your oral hygiene while sugary and acidic foods and beverages can damage teeth and gums and open you up to infection and decay.
Our Oral Hygiene Procedure
You should also visit your dentist every six months for a professional scale and clean. A professional clean will remove the plaque and tartar that your at-home regime can’t get rid of by using sophisticated tools and treatments. This clean also gives your dentist a chance to check up on your teeth and pick up on any small problems before they become disasters.
Your biannual trips to the dentist are also vital opportunities for your dentist to educate you on improving your at-home oral hygiene routine. We can tell if you’re brushing too hard, too softly or if you need to change your flossing technique. These trips to the dentist will be enormously helpful in preventing you from having to go through large scale dental treatments and they will save you money in the long run. Most private health care providers even provide you with two free visits per year, so it’s also a way to get the most out of your private health care fees.
Contact dhealth Dentistry Today
Contacting dhealth Dentistry in Melbourne couldn’t be easier. You can:- Call us on 03 9882 6938
- Email us at info@dhealth.com.au
- Pop in and see us at 257 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Melbourne