How to Keep Your Teeth Healthy

Tips for Maintaining Oral Hygiene

Nov 27, 2008 Scott Hayden

What you need to do in order to keep your teeth in perfect shape is actually quite simple. Select the right kind of toothbrush, eat a well balanced diet, and floss daily.

Kids don't need to worry too much about their teeth, because parents who are conscious about the importance of oral health will make sure their children will be sitting in the big chair in the dentist's office every six months to a year. As they approach adulthood however, how long their teeth stay in their mouths is up to them. Here are some sure fire ways to keep the mouth healthy. It's easier than some people might believe.

Brushing and Using Dental Floss

Electric toothbrushes will do a better job of removing plaque and tartar from your teeth. Use fluoride toothpaste and gently concentrate on where your teeth meet the gum line, and keep your toothbrush on for at least two minutes. Afterwards, grab some dental floss (waxed is a good choice since it can get in the spaces between the teeth much easier) and go around each tooth in a curved motion. This will dislodge any leftover food particles and get rid of plaque the toothbrush might have missed, especially at the rear of the mouth.

Some kinds of mouthwash will taste better than others, so experiment for a while and find one that's agreeable. Swish it around and gargle for about thirty seconds. Alternatively, you can choose to rinse your mouth with warm water mixed with salt. This is a natural disinfectant and will help inflamed gums.

Watch Those Sweets

To prevent tooth decay cut down on those carbonated sodas, chocolate bars, hard candies and those sickly sweet energy bars you might be tempted to eat in the morning. Instead, choose more raw vegetables like celery, and fruits like apples and pears. Red wine, fruit juices and vinegary salad dressings can be acidic and will eat away at the tooth enamel over time. Some kinds of bubble gum can rot an otherwise healthy set of teeth too. But, gum with xylitol, a sugar substitute, can help to stop tooth decay.

Nuts, green leafy vegetables, cheeses and low fat milk are better choices for snacks in the middle of the afternoon.

Visit Your Dentist Regularly

Dentists have all the technology necessary to make sure your teeth are in good shape, and to find problems that are not visible just by looking in the mirror, like cavities and gingivitis. The dentist will also screen for signs of oral cancer, which is treatable if detected early.

Teeth are used for only one purpose, chewing food. Cracking hard nutshells, chewing pencils or pen caps and trying to remove bottle caps will dislodge fillings and loosen teeth.

If you wake up in the morning with a splitting headache, and experience pain around your jaws or near the ears, you may have a condition called bruxism. The clenching and grinding of teeth sometimes occurs during the night, and can result in increased tooth sensitivity and chewed tissue inside the mouth. Dentists can make a custom mouth guard to protect the teeth, or they can be bought over the counter (although these are less expensive they might not fit well). Another approach for the dentist would be to simply file down the surface of a tooth to correct the bite. Prompt treatment will save you lots of uncomfortable problems.

There are links between poor oral health and heart disease, strokes and diabetes. Pay attention to any unusual symptoms and make an appointment to see the dentist right away.

The copyright of the article How to Keep Your Teeth Healthy in General Medicine is owned by Scott Hayden. Permission to republish How to Keep Your Teeth Healthy in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

A dental checkup