Sunday, September 29, 2019

5 Simple Ways to Protect Your Teeth

Teeth! Its something that I as a parent stress out a lot about, making sure my kids and I don't develop cavities. Here's some helpful tips from a reader on how to keep your teeth healthy and strong.



Fashion trends may come and go but a great, white smile is always going to be something that’s in. Everyone knows that they should be brushing their teeth at least two times every day, flossing after every meal, and using mouthwash at night but there are plenty of other steps you can be taking to ensure your teeth stay healthy.

For many people, keeping them healthy is just part of the process. For the best smile, you want to make sure they stay protected, stay clean, and don’t get damaged in any way.

You might think the most obvious solution to this would be “don’t eat rocks” (which is true), but there are plenty of other steps you can be taking in order to best protect your teeth.

Below, we’re going to run through five unique ways to keep those pearly whites looking beautiful.


Don’t Brush Too Much

Keeping your teeth clean is a must and the easiest way to do so is by brushing your teeth. It’s something you learned as soon as you could walk. The general rule of thumb is to brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes each time.

What you don’t want to be doing is over brushing your teeth. Not only is this somewhat exhausting, but too much teeth brushing could remove that protective enamel around your teeth. Enamel is what protects your teeth from decay and disease.

Think about washing your hands. Washing your hands is great, but washing your hands over and over and over again is going to eventually take skin away or damage your hands.

Keep in mind not to brush too hard. You don’t need to be jackhammering your teeth and gums. That will only lead to receding gums or further dental damage.

Choose the Right Toothbrush

Even though you might think that any old toothbrush will do, you need to make sure you’re choosing a high quality toothbrush.

Don’t go to the pharmacy and cheap out buying a pack of five toothbrushes for $3. These are your teeth, and you need to be spending top dollar to keep them in great shape.

Consider buying an electric toothbrush. Many have timers on them so they will tell you when to switch sides or when to stop. This makes sure you’re not over or under brushing.

In addition, electric toothbrushes are easier on the mouth and gums overall. They help maintain pristine oral health.

Watch Your Diet

You are what you eat! And what you eat is going to have a direct impact on your overall dental health. There are plenty of foods you should be eating to help build up teeth strength, but there are also things that you should be avoiding.

Stay away from sugary drinks and substances. A soda every now and then isn’t going to ruin your mouth, but repeated sugar intake is going to damage your teeth and lead them open for disease and decay. Those acidic drinks are doing you no favors.

Be sure to stay away from sugared gum as well and opt for the sugarless kind. When in doubt, stick to fruits, veggies, and plenty of natural foods.

Make Regular Dental Visits

Many people opt to go to the doctor or dentist only when they know something is wrong. Well, that’s wrong!

You should be making regular visits to the dentist at least once every six months. Not just for a regular cleaning, but they’ll be able to check on your overall dental health and recommend any further procedures.

In addition, those regular visits are going to save you a lot of time, effort, and money down the road if you do need some sort of major procedure. Be smart about it and make sure you’re heading in for your regular checkups.


Drink Lots of Water

Well, well, well, what a surprise! A health article telling you that drinking water is important. Well, we’re here to tell you again: it’s incredibly important.

Not only is drinking water fantastic for your overall health, but it’s also fantastic and vital for your dental health.

We’ve all experienced a dry mouth before which is usually nothing to be alarmed of. But regularly having a dry mouth is like a nesting bed to accelerate tooth decay. It could also lead to an infection, neither of which are fun.

Make sure you’re sipping on water throughout the day or at the very least, a sugarless drink.


See my disclaimer.