According to Slate, Americans spend almost $100 billion a year on dental care. While some of that undoubtedly goes toward vanity procedures, like all on four dental implants and teeth whitening, most of it goes towards necessary procedures for protecting dental health. However, the good news is that if you take extra care to take care of your dental health at home, you can cut out many of the expenses accrued when visiting your family dentist.
Four Tips for Keeping Your Teeth and Gums Healthy at Home
- Rinse After Meals
- Get a New Toothbrush
- What’s Your Rush?
- Lay off the Sweets
For WebMD, one of the best things you can do to keep your teeth healthy is to rinse out your mouth after every meal. This will help remove any acid build up on your teeth. Additionally, you can chew gum to stimulate saliva production, a natural part of keeping your teeth clean. It’s important to note that it’s not a great idea to brush your teeth after you eat, however. If you’ve just eaten acidic food that softens your enamel, you could literally brush the enamel away.
One of the simplest things you can do to promote oral health, according to Reader’s Digest, is to regularly replace your toothbrush. This helps in two ways. Firstly, the fibers of your brush will naturally wear down over time, making them less effective at keeping your teeth clean. Additionally, old toothbrushes become havens for bacteria that can damage your teeth. By regularly replacing your brush, you can avoid both issues.
If you follow none of the other tips on this list, be sure to follow this one. As Everyday Health writes, too many people think they can brush their teeth in 30 seconds and maintain pearly, healthy teeth. Of course, that’s nonsense. To maintain oral health, you should be brushing your teeth for two to three minutes twice a day, everyday. Whether you need to hum a two minute long song as you brush or you set a timer, this is a must for avoiding expensive meetings with your family dentist.
Look: we all know how delicious ice cream, cake, chips, and all the other goodies taste, but they’re absolutely terrible for your teeth — not to mention your waistline. The sugars contained within junk food are a perfect food source for the bacteria that break down otherwise healthy teeth. If you want a healthy smile, step away from the Oreos.
Using these at-home dental care tips, you can certainly stave off the cost of whitening teeth and having to pay for fillings for cavities. That being said, it’s important to realize that even if you put these tips to use each and everyday, it’s still a good idea to visit family dentists you can trust every six months, as the American Dental Association recommends. Combining at-home care with regular visits to your family dental care center, you can keep your teeth looking and feeling great. Good references here.
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