Your smile can last a lifetime if you provide it with the proper care. There are three essential things you need to do to keep your smile healthy and shining bright: Eat a healthy diet, practice effective daily hygiene at home, and visit our dentist in White Oak at least twice a year for regular hygiene visits.
Taking Care of Your Smile
To maintain your oral health, you’ll want to eat a balanced diet which will provide vitamins and minerals such as calcium and phosphorus. This will keep your teeth strong and your immune system healthy so you can fight off dental infections such as tooth decay and gum disease. Avoid high-sugar foods as much as possible. When you do have a sugary snack between meals, make sure to drink a lot of water. This will help rinse your smile clean.
Daily home oral care is very important. Brushing, flossing, and rinsing your smile with antibacterial mouthwash will help remove plaque and control tartar that develops in your mouth. Plaque is the film that develops on your teeth after you eat something. If the plaque isn’t removed, it hardens and becomes tartar. That’s why tartar is also referred to as “mineralized plaque.” Both plaque and tartar feed the bacteria that cause cavities and gum disease, so you want to get rid of them.
Your Hygiene Visit
Even if you brush and floss carefully, some tartar will gather in your mouth over time, especially in places your brush doesn’t reach. During your professional dental cleaning, our hygienist uses instruments to loosen and remove tartar deposits from your teeth. After cleaning your teeth, we’ll also polish them. This leaves your teeth looking great and it will also make your teeth more resistant to plaque.
Next, Dr. Owoc will inspect your teeth and monitor your overall dental health.
Your regular hygiene visit will also include a full set of dental x-rays. Dr. Owoc uses the x-rays to diagnose and treat potential issues such as cavities, tooth decay, abscesses, and impacted teeth. For our younger patients, x-rays help Dr. Owoc make sure their smiles are developing correctly.
After your hygiene visit, your smile will feel clean and look fantastic. Your breath will be fresh and you’ll have the peace of mind that comes from knowing that a professional dentist has inspected your smile.
Protecting Smiles in White Oak
Dr. Owoc is your smile specialist in White Oak. Call today to schedule your next checkup. You can also ask about how cosmetic and restorative treatments such as teeth whitening, veneers, and dental implants can enhance your smile.