Taking care of your teeth properly needs to form an integral part of your every day routine in the same way that you have a shower, eat your meals and go to bed at night. If you don’t take care of your teeth properly then you could lose them and they are the only natural set that you have. Don’t put yourself at the mercy of dental decay and gum disease, follow the simple suggestions set out below and you should have nothing to worry about when it comes to the good health of your mouth.
Twice a day – first thing in the morning and before you go to bed at night are recommended – you should brush your teeth with tooth paste that contains fluoride. Make sure that your brush has firm bristles otherwise it won’t function as well as it might. Brush all corners of your mouth, including the inside of your teeth, which can sometimes be missed out in peoples’ routine.
Once you have brushed, get into the habit of flossing as well. By doing so you are removing even more plaque because the bristles of your tooth brush cannot get into the tight gaps between your teeth and clear those areas of plaque.
Pursue a healthy, balanced diet as well and keep sweet snacks to a minimum. Sugary foods contribute to greater production of plaque which is the major cause of both decay in teeth and disease and inflammation in gums. By following these simple routines then you should be giving your mouth the best chance of staying free from disease. Keep your Leeds dentist abreast of what’s going on your mouth by attending an appointment with her or her every six months or as directed.
Posts Tagged ‘dental decay’
How to improve your daily dental hygiene routine with help from Leeds dentists
Saturday, April 16th, 2011City of Leeds dentists advise patients about how to prevent gum disease
Tuesday, April 5th, 2011
Your gums should be just as important in your mind when you are thinking about taking care of your mouth. They are a greater cause of tooth loss than dental decay itself so it is well worth paying attention to how well you are looking after them. Rather than having to go through the pain and indignity of suffering from gum disease and then having to have it treated, it is best to look after them in the first place to do your best in making sure that gum disease doesn’t occur.
Your primary concern should be plaque, a substance which is produced in the mouth when you eat and drink. Making sure it is removed is not only so that your teeth don’t start to decay; plaque also causes the gums to inflame and gingivitis can result. This is fairly easily dealt with and is common but if it is left to progress it can turn in to periodontitis where the jaw bone itself becomes inflamed.
By brushing and flossing effectively you should be removing the maximum amount of plaque from the mouth where it can harm the gums and cause them to become diseased. You should brush and floss at least twice a day and maybe again if you have eaten a sugary snack or a starchy meal.
Be sure also to visit your dentist every six months so that your mouth can be checked by a professional. Report any problems you think might be developing; it is better to be safe than sorry, even if your dentist says that there is no problem with your gums. Your City of Leeds dentist has all the information about how to prevent gum disease from occurring.
Flossing will help your oral health, say City of Leeds dentists
Tuesday, March 29th, 2011
We all know how important it is to brush our teeth but how many of us neglect to floss? The fact is that flossing is a vital part of keeping your mouth nice and healthy and ought to form part of your routine. Not doing so is just helping plaque to keep a hold in your mouth and put you at risk of dental decay and other oral conditions.
Flossing is the act of pulling a thin piece of tape between your teeth. It is done in order to remove plaque which can easily hide there. Brushing your teeth might get rid of the plaque which is on the surface of your teeth, but it doesn’t matter how well you brush, chances are some it will still remain between your teeth.
If plaque is allowed to stay there between your teeth then it can start to break down the protective layer of enamel which keeps your teeth safe. Cavities can begin to form and the nerves inside your teeth can become compromised. Further, a build up of plaque on the gum line of your teeth can leave you open to contracting gum disease like gingivitis or its more advanced form, periodontitis.
Flossing might be a little painful to begin with if you haven’t done it before. Gums are sensitive and having tape dragged across them might cause the tissue to break and an amount of bleeding to occur. This ought to stop in time but if it doesn’t you should alert your dentist.
Talk to your City of Leeds dentist if you need any more advice about the benefits of flossing and take the next step towards enhancing your oral health.
Daily dental hygiene: get the facts from Leeds dentists
Monday, March 28th, 2011
Leading a busy life can sometimes lead you to forget just how important it is to take good care of your teeth. But the fact is that many of the activities that you take for granted depend on you having a healthy mouth. If you contract gum disease or start experiencing dental decay then eating, drinking and even talking can be rendered much more difficult. So it is best to take care of your mouth in the way that dentists advise.
First of all, you should be brushing your teeth at least twice a day to remove the plaque which is a major cause of tooth decay and gum disease. You ought to brush for about three minutes and make sure that you are covering all the areas of your mouth from front to back and top to bottom. As well as brushing you should floss as well to remove the plaque which forms in between your teeth.
All food causes plaque to some degree but sugary and starchy foods produce the most and you should restrict yourself in how much of these foods you eat. Sometimes you might wish to brush your teeth after you’ve had a sugary snack or a starchy meal. Activities such as smoking tobacco and drinking a lot of alcohol can have a detrimental effect on your oral hygiene too and are leading causes of oral cancer.
All of these measures should be done in conjunction with regular visits to your dentist so that your oral health can be monitored by a professional. Dentists can spot the signs of any problems early on and offer effective diagnosis before the problem gets too bad. Talk to your Leeds dentist if you need more advice about these matters.
Guard against periodontal disease with City of Leeds dentists
Thursday, March 3rd, 2011
Taking care of your teeth ought to go hand in hand with looking after your gums as well. The sad fact is that all too often gum problems go unnoticed and are actually a greater cause of tooth loss than dental decay itself. In conjunction with regular visits to your City of Leeds dentist, you should be able to recognise the signs of periodontal disease so that it can be treated before it gets worse.
Gum disease generally is caused by a build up plaque on the gum line of teeth. Plaque is formed when you eat and drink, particularly sugary and starchy substances. It can cause the gums to become inflamed and patients can then contract gingivitis, the most common form of gum disease. Gingivitis shows itself as sensitivity in the gums and reddening.
If gingivitis is allowed to take hold then the inflammation, previously confined to the gums, spreads to the bones which hold your teeth in place. This is called periodontitis and it is a rather nasty condition. Periodontitis manifests itself with sever reddening of the gums and the appearance that your teeth are lengthening. This is actually where your gums are receding. You might find that you have odd, metallic tastes in your mouth and find that eating and drinking is giving you pain because of the sensitivity of your gums.
Brushing and flossing as recommended ought to be enough to stave off periodontal disease in most cases by clearing the mouth of plaque but sometimes it develops. This is one of the many reasons why it is a good idea to get into the habit of visiting your City of Leeds dentist every six months. In that way a professional can monitor your mouth and spot the early signs of periodontal disease and treat it.
Dealing with Bad Teeth in Central Leeds
Thursday, January 27th, 2011
Dental decay in central Leeds will affect most of us at some point in our lives, from childhood through to old age and if the teeth get really bad, chances are it’s going to cost a lot of money to put right- all dental work comes at a price from veneers to implants, so in the case of bad teeth, prevention is much more preferable to cure. In all cases in the mouth, problems start to arise because of poor oral hygiene and poor dietary habits. Sugars, starches smoking and excessive drinking can lead to a breakdown of saliva in the mouth and allow bacteria to develop into plaque- this in turn leads to gum disease from which cavities can form. All good hygiene starts at home, from what toothbrush and paste you choose, to mouthwashes and flosses. A regular hygiene program is a good start to fending off bad teeth. But don’t get complacent by thinking this eliminates the need to see your dentist regularly. Dentists can see things you have overlooked; a simple x-ray can identify decay and caries early on. They will remove any build up of plaque or tartar and repair the teeth. It’s also the best opportunity to get advice on your own hygiene programs. Bad teeth are also ugly, and that in itself can lead to all manner of issues arising.
Get expert advice about which tooth paste to choose from Leeds dentists
Tuesday, January 11th, 2011
We all know how important it is to take care of our teeth with effective brushing at home. By brushing twice a day you are stopping the build up of plaque which, if left unchecked, can cause cavities to form and dental decay to occur. But there are so many varieties of tooth paste on offer, it be confusing to know which one to choose.
Tooth paste ought to be applied to the bristles of your tooth brush when you are brushing your teeth. You should be using about a pea sized amount. Any more is unnecessary and wasteful and using less will be ineffective. Children ought to be especially careful an infants under two would do best to avoid tooth pastes fortified with fluoride.
For anyone older than two, tooth pastes enriched with fluoride can be very beneficial to teeth. This is because fluoride helps to strengthen enamel. Enamel is the tough substance which coats teeth and helps protect them from plaque. Most modern tooth pastes contain fluoride and it is also to be found in tap water.
Although increasingly rare, some tooth pastes contain alcohol. Alcohol is extremely effective at killing bacteria but it doesn’t discriminate and also kills the ‘good’ bacteria in the mouth. Tooth pastes containing alcohol and bicarbonate of soda can also help to make bad breath worse. This is because they leave the mouth in ideal conditions for the bad breath bacteria to flourish.
The next time you see your Leeds dentist, be sure to ask them about tooth paste. He or she is a trained professional and knows all about tooth pastes and which one will be best for your unique mouth.
Handling dental pain in central Leeds
Thursday, December 16th, 2010
You never really know when you may be struck down with dental pain in central Leeds and it could be in an evening or weekend out of dental hours. It’s important to understand and identify the nature of the aggravation in situations like these, so that if needed, you can ease the problem yourself until treatment can be administered by your dentist. Such pains can arise from a chipped tooth, a filling falling out or a veneer dropping off that can leave a sharp edge in the mouth and expose the gums and tongue to lacerations. Other problems can stem from recent dental treatments such as root canals- these pains generally subside in time, but can be eased by using mild pain killers. Most pain however can stem from a period decay in the mouth and then strikes immediately in the form of a toothache. This is where the nerve is exposed and reacts to cold or hot temperatures or chewing. Again, mild pain killers can be used along with keeping the tooth clean until a dentist can be sought. An abscess, however can cause the face to swell and can poison the bloodstream, developing into an extremely dangerous situation and immediate treatment needs to be administered from a dentist or doctor. Information on such problems can be found at the dentists, or is available on the internet. But the more you understand these problems, the easier it is to self-treat them.
Fixing dental decay in the city of Leeds
Tuesday, December 14th, 2010
In the city of Leeds, dental decay, at some point, affects over 60% of adults and an alarming 80% of children. It’s normally caused by a lack of oral hygiene combined with the consumption of starchy and sugary foods and drinks. Smoking, drinking and bad diet can lead to a dry mouth. Together, these factors can lead to gum disease and bacteria building up very quickly in the mouth and if not removed, leads to plaque forming and breaking down the surface of the teeth. At worst, cavities or caries can form, resulting in tooth loss over time. Yet, dental decay is also very easy to avoid. It starts at home with good diet and oral health care. Brushing correctly with the right tooth brush and paste, combined with flossing and rinsing should be enough to keep decay at bay. However, some bacteria will break through, so it’s always important to keep up with regular visits to the dentist. It’s the best way of having plaque and tartar removed. Early signs of decay can be spotted with a simple x-ray and treated immediately and if the decay is advanced, the inside of the tooth can be cleared out with a root canal and then filled or capped. Tooth decay spreads fast and looks ugly in the mouth and can be expensive to rectify but with a good hygiene program, there’s no reason why it should be a problem.
Why choose cosmetic bonding in Leeds
Thursday, December 9th, 2010
It’s very easy in Leeds to get drawn into the lure of having to get expensive dental treatment to restore that wonderful smile to your mouth when, frankly, it’s not always necessary and there are a lot cheaper and less complicated methods out there to fix your teeth. It’s great to have a healthy and good looking mouth and it can be a great source of self esteem and confidence, but over time, teeth can start to look tired; they can get chipped or cracked, decay can set, gaps can appear, teeth can become stained. This could be the time to consider cosmetic bonding. Much of the treatment can be carried out with a local anaesthetic, using resins to repair any damage. Once the problem area is diagnosed, it is treated with an etching solution and then a series of resin layers are built up on the tooth until restored. Finally the tooth/teeth are sculptured and polished. The beauty of this treatment is not only its simplicity, but the cost. Choosing cosmetic bonding can come in at a third of the price, avoiding the more expensive options of veneers or crowns. It can restore the niggling little looks in the mouth and can be used to replace those more ‘uglier’ silver fillings.