Content create by-Miranda Fogh

Dental care is an often neglected, but necessary, obligation. If you do not take proper care of your teeth, it leads to much worse complications. Tooth decay, plaque, gum disease and even heart disease are complications of poorly cared-for teeth. Follow the tips below to keep these illnesses at bay.

Prevention is the key to avoiding expensive dental work. Most dental problems are completely avoidable when you take preventative measures. Some important preventative measures are brushing your teeth twice daily, flossing daily, and seeing the dentist for a teeth cleaning once yearly. Avoiding sugary drinks like Kool-Aid and soft drinks will also help.

If you're anxious when the dentist works on you, try using relaxation techniques like deep breathing. Breathe through the entire experience. This will help you sail through the procedure a lot better.

Be realistic about your expectations for whitening toothpastes. The compounds and abrasives they contain are often very helpful at lightening the surface stains on your teeth, such as coffee stains. However, they are not going to address more serious issues like decay or stains that have penetrated the tooth enamel. Most dental experts agree that it is safe to use such toothpastes twice a day.

You can introduce electric toothbrushes to your children starting at the age of three. You should always supervise your children's toothbrushing activities while using these brushes and make sure that your child understands that an electric toothbrush is not a toy and should only be used in his or her mouth.

Sugarless gum is a good way to clean your teeth if you cannot carry a toothbrush with you everywhere. Chew a piece of sugarless gum to clean your teeth after eating a small snack. Keep in mind that gum is not good for your teeth if it contains any kind of sugar.

Eating when you're not hungry not only adds weight, but can also increase your risk of cavities. If you snack throughout the day, you expose your teeth to more cavity-causing bacteria, sugars and acid. Thus, you should eat only when you're hungry in order to protect your dental health.

Before visiting your dentist, write down a list of your concerns. At the dentist, it is easy to forget your questions and concerns. If you have a list, you can get all your questions answered. Your appointment is a perfect time to ask about dental hygiene or concerns you may have.

Get a tongue scraper and use it every morning. This will clean your tongue and help remove bacteria. Suggested Reading will feel better and your mouth will not smell so bad. A tongue scraper is more effective than brushing your tongue with your tooth brush, and takes less time too.

If you've just had a meal but don't have access to water, a brush and toothpaste, pop in a stick of sugar-free gum. Read the Full Post recommended this as an adequate substitute until you can brush your teeth properly. Chewing gum will also help remove bits of food that may be lodged between teeth.

If you are thinking about getting a tongue or a lip piercing, you should know that this trend could have devastating effects on your teeth and gums. A metal piercing could crack a tooth badly and having a piercing rub on your gums constantly will cause them to become inflamed.





If your gums bleed easily, don't just put up with it--see your dentist right away! Bloody, sensitive gums can be an indication of a gum infection that requires antibiotics. Infections can spread to the teeth or to other parts of the body, so you want to get them taken care of as soon as possible.

If you have young children, it is important you teach them about dental hygiene. Show them how to properly brush their teeth and teach them to recognize the foods that will damage their teeth. They will have a better hygiene as adults if they get into the habit of brushing and flossing regularly.

Use mouthwash after you brush. Mouthwash contains anti-bacterial properties that help prevent the build-up of plaque. After you brush, swish a mouthful of mouthwash around your mouth to rinse your teeth and gums. You can also use mouthwash in the morning after you get up to eliminate your morning breath.

If you can afford it, using an oral irrigator is a great alternative to flossing. They shoot water out at high pressure which removes both plaque and food debris from between your teeth. Combined with brushing, this technique will remove almost double the plaque, plus gum health is greatly improved.

Eat hard foods to help clean your teeth. Eat celery, popcorn, carrots and apples to end your meal. These firm foods clean your teeth while you eat them. If you can't brush teeth, you can clean them with these foods.

Always remember to brush the inner surfaces of your teeth as well as the outer surfaces that you can see. Just because you can't see the back surfaces, doesn't mean that they don;t need brushing. Cavities can form in the back surfaces and you might not notice them until they get big enough to feel with your tongue or become visible in the font.

If you hate flossing, consider using an interdental cleaner instead of floss string. These cleaners look like plastic picks or sticks, and they are much easier to handle than string. Plus, you can use the non-floss side as a basic dental pick for reaching hard to reach corners. They may cost a little more than floss, but they're worth it!

Dental sealants might be ideal for you if you have sensitive molars. These products can be applied directly to the surface of your molars to protect them, prevent decay and avoid cavities. You should talk to your dentist about this product if you tend to get cavities on your molars.

After reading this article, do you feel like you have a better grasp on the field of dentistry? It's time for you to take really good care of your teeth, and now you know some information that will help you out. Aren't you glad you stopped by to read this article?