Caring for Teeth & Gums

Optimum oral health starts at home with caring for teeth and gums. Keeping your mouth healthy is important for your overall health and wellbeing. Follow this simple advice to ensure that your smile is pristine clean!

Brushing

Brushing is the first step in your daily oral hygiene routine. Brush twice a day for two minutes, in the morning and at night, using fluoride toothpaste.

Choose a toothbrush that suits you – medium bristles for normal gums or soft bristles if you have recession. Electric brushes are great for those with stains or who need an extra helping hand.

Brush all of the surfaces of your teeth and don’t forget your tongue. Angle your brush at 45º to the gum, gently massage the gum by vibrating your brush in a circular motion, and then roll down the tooth to the edge. Focus on 2-3 teeth at a time. Brush the outside, inside, and biting surfaces of your teeth. Once you finish, spit your toothpaste but don’t rinse. This allows the active ingredients in your paste time to work on the surfaces of your teeth.

Make sure to change your toothbrush every three months.

Cleaning Between Your Teeth

The next critical step is to clean the surfaces between your teeth or interdentally. Here, plaque and food get trapped and can cause decay. To clean interdentally, you can choose from floss or tape and interdental brushes.

To floss, start by wrapping the floss or tape around your thumbs and index fingers. Gently guide the floss between the teeth and wrap it around the side of one tooth in a ‘C’ shape. Repeat this on the opposing tooth, gently following the contour of the tooth. Release and repeat around the mouth, using a clean piece of the floss each time.

To brush, choose a size that goes between the teeth with only a small resistance. If you need to push, it is too big and can damage the gum. Insert the brush from the outside, and once between the teeth, gently brush it along the contour of each tooth, slightly below the gum line. Rinse your brush between uses, either under the tap or in mouth rinse.

Diet and Lifestyle

A healthy nutritious diet and balanced lifestyle are important for your entire body, and also for your mouth. Sugar affects our teeth by leading to tooth decay. Acid leads to tooth wear. A tooth-friendly diet is possible by limiting high-sugar and high-acid foods, especially between meals. Swap biscuits, sweets and fizzy drinks for cheese, raw vegetables and water. Staying hydrated with water reduces bad breath and also helps to wash away food debris.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle with exercise and not smoking is very important for optimising healing and warding off disease.

Keeping in Check

Regular visits to your dentist and hygienist will help keep your mouth healthy as well as highlight any potential issues early on. Visit your dentist every six months, or as prescribed, to keep your jaw, teeth, gums and restorations in their optimum condition. Professional dental cleaning every six months will reduce your risk of gum disease from plaque and tartar that remain in hard to reach areas.