Brushing your teeth twice daily is not only good oral health practice, it’s highly recommended. But if you are not doing it right, your teeth and overall oral health may can be affected. Here are a few common tooth-brushing mistakes that we need to be aware of to make the most out of our daily dental routine.
The goal is to have a healthy mouth and smile to last a lifetime. It all begins with regular dental checkups and how we maintain our teeth and gums after we leave the dentist!
Make sure you pick the right toothbrush. It should be the right size and bristle.
There are a lot of toothbrushes to choose from! Large or small, soft or hard, manual or electrical? Depending on the size of your mouth, its important to make sure all your teeth can be reached so most times, smaller is better because it can get to those hard to reach places in the back of your mouth.
It terms of bristles, softer is usually better. Hard bristles can wear down the tooth structure and damage teeth and gums while softer bristles clean effectively and can bend to clear away plaque more easily at the gum line. Your dentist or hygienist can advise which one best suits your dental needs.
Some people think that the harder they brush the better. If they don’t scrub their teeth, they’re not getting them clean enough. This can be a detriment to the tooth because tooth enamel can erode from the “scrubbing” exposing the root of the tooth. This can lead to gum irritation and sensitivity. The trick is to brush gently more like a massage, not a scrub, and make sure its for two to three minutes.
If you are hanging on to your tooth brush for more than three to four months, it may be too long.
After this amount of time, with daily use, the toothbrush isn’t as effective. Also, make sure you rinse your brush after use. Bacteria can grow on an unrinsed brush! Furthermore, common sense tells us not to share a toothbrush with anybody and to also keep it in open air to dry out between uses. Storing it in a drawer or cupboard can cultivate more bacteria and the bristles can become misshapen.
Another common mistake that needs attention is that many of us seem to skip areas such as inner tooth surfaces or the gum line. The inner tooth surface is the back of your teeth where your tongue presses against and the gum line is where the tooth meets the gum. Plaque quickly builds up in these areas, a great place for bacteria to ‘hang out”. So just brushing the front surface of the tooth doesn’t do the job. Be mindful of the front, back and gum line – the whole tooth!
Dental health is important. Having a healthy mouth can improve your quality of life and overall health. Let our dental practice in Walled Lake, Mi help! Dr. Hechtman has been providing dental care for over 40 years. Our goal at Walled Lake Dentistry is to work with our patients in achieving and maintaining long term dental health and a beautiful smile. Call us today at 248-669-5221 and get started on healthy mouth and smile!