7 tips on how to keep your teeth safe and sound until old age

Just a couple of centuries ago, dental problems were a relatively rare occurrence. The good ecology and natural nutrition of our recent ancestors contributed in the best possible way to the preservation of dentition, and only “bad” heredity or injuries forced us to seek medical help. Today, store shelves are literally bursting with oral care products. However, the queue to see the dentist is not decreasing, and his patients are becoming younger. What is the reason for such an unpleasant phenomenon?

Our contemporaries must be given their due - with all the variety of ways to maintain healthy teeth, we rarely use professional recommendations, leaving this issue to chance. The food we eat can be called healthy by a huge stretch, but its careful grinding and lengthy cooking make the food too soft. Even a salad of fresh vegetables in the hands of professional chefs turns into something light and airy, which does not require additional “teeth effort”. And, of course, a love for sweets that literally destroy tooth enamel and dental tissue.

All of the above has the most negative impact on the condition of the teeth. Rapid destruction, frequent loss, numerous diseases, pain and discomfort - almost every person is familiar with these unpleasant phenomena. But it's never too late to change your lifestyle and attitude towards your teeth! Pay attention to your diet, follow the recommendations of specialists and give up everything that poses a danger to your teeth - and you will be able to smile at your grandchildren with a Hollywood smile, and not show off the best examples of implants or denture designs.

Caring for your mouth in general

Remember that hygienic care is required not only for teeth, but also for gums, tongue, and the inside of the cheek. For this purpose, you can use a separate soft brush and clean the oral cavity completely. The condition of your teeth directly depends on the health of your gums. It is within your power to promptly remove pathogenic bacteria and massage your gums. It is not at all necessary to go for professional procedures; you can massage your gums at home using your fingers. This will significantly speed up the blood circulation process and prevent stagnation.

Consequences of neglecting hygiene

When a person eats, the acid-base balance of the oral cavity changes. There are always bacteria on the mucous membranes, but when the pH changes, favorable conditions arise for the proliferation of pathogens.

Bacteria combine with each other to form plaque on the teeth. In places where food particles remain, they multiply especially quickly. With subsequent meals, microbes receive additional portions of nutrients.

Their metabolic products contain acids that destroy tooth enamel. Caries develops - the most common dental disease. It is accompanied by decay processes and spreads deep into the teeth. As a result, carious cavities are formed.

The soft bacterial plaque becomes hard over time. Deposits form on the surface of the teeth and under the gums. Porous tartar is an excellent home for bacteria. Here they can multiply freely and poison surrounding tissues.

After some time, stomatitis develops, and gingivitis is inflammation of the soft tissues surrounding the teeth. The spread of inflammatory changes deeper leads to periodontitis (inflammation of the upper layers of bone and ligaments that hold the teeth), suppuration, and bleeding gums. Units become loose and may be lost.

Chronic foci of infection harm the body, causing pathologies of the nasopharynx and larynx. Living without teeth leads to gastrointestinal diseases. Pathologies of the digestive system have a bad effect on endocrine organs and metabolic processes, as a result of which the entire body suffers.

Choosing the right toothbrush and toothpaste

If you do not have problems with your teeth and gums, the best option is to use a brush with medium-hard bristles and use toothpaste without abrasive particles. If your teeth are prone to rapid tartar formation, dentists recommend giving preference to hard brushes. As for pasta, try to avoid little-known companies. Toothpastes with a whitening effect can be used no more than once a week. If you have problems with sensitivity or bleeding gums, choose suitable hygiene products.

If you follow all of the above measures in combination, you can maintain healthy teeth until old age.

It is important! Dental care rules

What is a healthy and beautiful smile? This is, first of all, the attitude of the person himself to his health and beauty, and only then the work of the dentist. You need to take care of your oral cavity from childhood. How to properly care for your teeth?

Dental care rules

1. Brush your teeth correctly. You need to brush your teeth at least 2 times a day, morning and evening before bed. You can brush your teeth both before and after meals. If you brush your teeth before meals, do it 15 minutes before meals so as not to spoil the taste with toothpaste, and after breakfast, rinse your mouth with water. You can add half a teaspoon of baking soda to the water or replace the water with mouthwash.

If you are a fan of brushing your teeth after eating, this is also great, because this way you will be sure that food debris will be removed and will save you from the need to rinse your mouth additionally. There is no right or wrong way. Choose the one that suits you. It doesn't matter when you brush your teeth, it matters HOW YOU do it.

2. Use dental floss. There is a huge selection of dental floss: round and flat, super-floss, flavored, fluoride-coated, etc. Of course, you make the choice yourself, but a dentist can help you with this. You need to floss once a day before going to bed, combining it with subsequent brushing of your teeth. The movement of the thread is made only along the axis of the tooth.

3. The right toothbrush. The toothbrush should have artificial bristle fibers. The head of the toothbrush should be approximately 2-2.5 teeth in length. The hardness of the bristles is selected by the dentist. If you don’t know which brush to choose, it’s better to take a medium hard one.

To what extent do these fears correspond to reality?

If we talk about permanent braces, then everything is relative. Ten to fifteen years ago, braces were a rarer occurrence and might actually have caused jokes among classmates. But now many children are treated by an orthodontist, so even metal systems have become commonplace. Most likely, the reaction of peers will depend on how common it is in their environment to make jokes about appearance.

Some people want not to hide, but to emphasize their braces by adding bright ligatures

As for inconveniences, with braces they are quite predictable. There is indeed a period of getting used to pain, but it is usually short-lived. Slight dietary restrictions and a longer cleanse are also things that you will have to deal with.

These disadvantages of fixed braces are well known. However, usually all patients quickly get used to them.

But what should you do if your child flatly refuses to get braces?

Regular visits to the dentist

It is worth visiting the dentist in a timely manner for several reasons:

• only a specialist will be able to determine the presence of caries or other serious diseases;
• a specialist will help you get rid of plaque and hard deposits that are no longer subject to a regular brush;
• The dentist, using special equipment, will conduct a full examination of the teeth and gum condition;
• a preventive examination will help to identify existing diseases in the early stages and treat them in a timely manner, which will help to avoid advanced stages;

Making an appointment with the dentist today will not require much effort from you, but will reliably protect you from many unpleasant health problems.

Proper nutrition

Any dentist, when asked how to keep teeth healthy and strong, will definitely point out the significant impact of the foods consumed on the condition of the oral cavity. To strengthen teeth, it is recommended to include in your diet foods that are rich in minerals such as iodine, fluoride, sodium, magnesium, phosphorus and calcium. Sweet, spicy and sour foods should be avoided. They can be consumed, but in small quantities. You should also limit foods containing dyes. Dentists also pay attention to the consumption of hard foods, which can lead to chips or cracks in the crown. If there is a significant deficiency of microelements, then the deficiency should be filled with ready-made vitamin-mineral complexes.

Why is tooth enamel damaged?

Not only diseases, but also other reasons can lead to damage. To understand how to strengthen tooth enamel, you must first find the root cause of its destruction. It could be:

• poor heredity (if cases of thinned enamel are noticed in the family, there is a high risk of this feature manifesting itself in the offspring).
• uneven load, which leads to gradual wear of the teeth (for example, due to malocclusion);
• various gastrointestinal diseases (those that do not allow the full absorption of nutrients);
• thyroid diseases;
• diabetes;
• incorrectly selected hygiene products (paste and brush);
• brushing teeth with excessive pressure;
• altered composition of saliva (for example, due to excessive and regular consumption of products with aggressive composition that can destroy the enamel layer);
• dry mouth due to insufficient saliva (for example, due to the use of certain medications);
• bad habits (in particular, smoking);
• lack of the required amount of vitamins and minerals in the diet.

If the destruction is a consequence of a disease, only a dentist can help cope with the consequences. Non-medical causes can be ruled out on your own, while at the same time strengthening and restoring the enamel at home.

Why do children under 14 years of age have an increased risk of caries and pulpitis?

During the period of formation of a permanent dentition, when the child’s permanent teeth begin to erupt, there are 2 factors that increase the likelihood of developing dental diseases and parents need to take them into account.

• The anatomical features of “freshly erupted” permanent teeth contribute to the development of caries and its complications. The incompletely formed, delicate enamel of young permanent teeth, especially in the area of ​​numerous fissures (grooves) on the chewing teeth, is very vulnerable.
• A psychological feature of the “difficult” transitional age, when it is not easy to persuade a child to brush his teeth correctly and thoroughly, and, even more so, to go to the doctor and cure caries in a timely manner, especially if the child is afraid of the dentist.

Professional teeth cleaning at the dentist

Professional dental hygiene will help you completely get rid of hard deposits. Only with the help of professional hygiene products and dental instruments is it possible to eliminate tartar, which not only worsens the appearance, but also contributes to the rapid development and spread of harmful bacteria.

Today, dentists can offer their patients different cleaning methods, but the most popular ones are the following:

1. AirFlow. This technique is based on the use of three components: a stream of air, baking soda and a stream of water. It is absolutely safe, painless and can cope with deposits of any degree of complexity.
2. Ultrasonic cleaning. This technique combines the use of ultrasound, which destroys plaque from the inside, but does not affect the enamel, as well as the effect of a jet of water, which quickly removes all remaining deposits.
3. Laser cleaning. This is the latest method, which is based on the impact of a laser beam that evaporates all the moisture from the plaque, which causes layer-by-layer separation of deposits from the surface of the teeth.

Professional oral hygiene must be performed at least twice a year. This procedure does not take much time, is safe and painless. This type of cleaning has a positive effect on the entire oral cavity and significantly reduces the chances of developing dental diseases. It is also the best and most effective preventive measure possible.

Prevention

Many people know what preventive measures exist to preserve teeth. However, not everyone adheres to dentists' recommendations. To keep teeth and gums healthy until old age, oral hygiene alone is not enough. You should visit the dentist's office for a preventive examination at least 2 times a year. It is advisable for children to undergo a medical examination every 4 months. Preventive measures include all the recommendations described above, including professional teeth cleaning.

Formation of teeth in the womb

The rudiments of teeth are formed in humans when the general development of the body occurs in the womb. A woman’s behavior and nutrition during pregnancy, as well as the condition of her own teeth, directly affects the health of the child’s dental system in the future. Addiction to bad habits, vitamin deficiency (especially calcium and magnesium), sexually transmitted infections and refusal to treat dental diseases can have a negative impact. If there is a lack of microelements in a woman’s body, pregnant women themselves often face dental problems (bleeding gums, crown destruction, caries formation, etc.). To maintain dental health for a woman and her unborn child, it is necessary to follow all doctor’s recommendations.