Whether it’s your first visit or your hundredth, you are never too old to learn some helpful hygiene tips. Maintaining good oral health is key as you get older, so at College Street Dental Centre, we’ve highlighted a couple of handy things to try at home to keep you smiling right into your twilight years.
Brush often
The general recommendation from your dentist in Petersfield is that you brush your teeth a minimum of twice a day, once in the morning and once at night before you head off to bed. If you can do it between meals then that’s perfect, but still most of us still forget to keep up that brushing regimen at night, arguably the most crucial point of your day.
Giving your teeth a once over just before you go to sleep gets rid of any plaque or microbial build up that you’ve accumulated throughout the day. Why let it just sit there overnight when you can stop it spreading before you head off for a snooze.
Floss
Not just a dance, this is as important as brushing. Flossing regularly helps to get rid of small food particles that build up between your teeth and gums, it also reduces plaque and aids in lowering inflammation in the gum line.
Although flossing may prove difficult for young children or those with impairments, there are plenty of floss appliances available in stores to suit all needs. We recommend asking your dentist in Petersfield about the best way to improve your flossing game.
Use mouthwash
Outside of using it after appointments, some people still don’t keep up the use of mouthwash in their dental hygiene regime despite its benefits.
As any television advert will show you, mouthwash is necessary for keeping up good oral health. It helps to reduce the amount of acid in the mouth that come from your diet, cleans areas unreachable by a brush and aids in tooth remineralisation. It also leaves your breath smelling lovely and fresh.
There are plenty of store-bought brands that will work well, plus you could also ask for a prescription mouthwash for those with sensitive teeth.
Book regular appointments
Last of all, we can’t stress enough how often you should book an appointment with your dentist in Petersfield. We highly recommend a minimum of two appointments every year to keep track of your ongoing oral health.
Think of it in the same way you put your car in for an MOT but for teeth, you want to know how things are going and if there are any issues you should be aware of. After all, there may be things your practitioner will notice that you might not.
So, if you want to improve your oral health we recommend you start practising a few of the things we’ve mentioned. Hopefully this will get you started on the road to having a fantastic smile to show off in our practice on your next appointment.
