Keeping your Mouth Healthy

In the new year, many of us want to enact resolutions to better ourselves. One way you can implement a healthy resolution is to improve your oral health. Maintaining a healthy mouth is not just for white teeth and a bright smile. In fact, your oral health is tied to your overall health. If you want to improve the health of your mouth, try paying attention to your daily routine and diet. 

smiling young woman holding two thumbs up on a blue background in a blue jacket oral health general dentistry dentist in Columbia South Carolina

Oral Health Routine

One of the most efficient ways to keep your mouth healthy is to maintain a good oral health routine. Brushing and flossing your teeth are not just good practices, but they are vital to the health of your teeth. Dentists recommend that you brush your teeth at least twice a day or after meals. Additionally, you should floss your teeth daily. 

While you brush your teeth, you should use a soft-bristled toothbrush and an ADA-approved toothpaste. The best way to brush your teeth is to use small circles to buff away plaque from your teeth and gums gently. If you use a hard-bristled toothbrush, it is possible to brush too hard. Brushing too hard can damage your enamel and gums. 

Flossing your teeth is just as important as brushing. Brushing removes some plaque, but it is difficult to get between your teeth. Therefore, flossing helps eliminate plaque between your teeth and underneath your gum line. These places are areas that are vulnerable to developing tooth decay and gum disease. 

A robust daily oral health routine can keep your mouth healthy. 

Diet

Your diet is an important part of your oral health. Everything that goes into your mouth can affect your oral health as well as your overall health. Therefore, it is essential to be aware of your dietary habits. 

One element of your diet that could be harming your health is sugar. While sugar itself isn’t detrimental to your teeth, its reaction with bacteria is. Like most places in your body, your mouth houses good and harmful bacteria.

These bacteria feed on the foods that are left behind after you eat. When you eat sugar, these bacteria consume the remnants, creating an acid. The acid formed from bacteria erodes and destroys your enamel. Unfortunately, this can increase your chances of developing tooth decay. 

Therefore, you should try to avoid eating foods with high amounts of processed sugar. 

Teeth As Tools

Finally, you should avoid using your teeth as tools to help keep your mouth healthy. It can be tempting to use your teeth to open a package, but you are likely to damage your teeth. While your enamel is the strongest tissue in your body, it is still susceptible to damage. Opening plastic packages can chip or break your teeth. Additionally, the packaging can cut your gums, leaving you vulnerable to infection. 

Also, some things we put in our mouths, such as keys, are full of bacteria. If you don’t have a free hand, you want to use your mouth as an extra hand. However, many of our everyday objects harbor significant bacteria that can make you sick.