Part of having the perfect smile is about how it looks, but another part of having the perfect smile is how it smells. While this may sound weird, it makes sense when you consider that scent is the strongest human sense tied to memory. This essentially means that if you have bad breath, people are more likely to remember that over the fact that you have an amazing smile.
Bad breath is unfortunately common with the American Dental Association estimating that it affects 50% of Americans at least once in their lifetime. However, bad breath is also usually somewhat easy to treat and manage. The first step to eliminating your bad breath is to determine what is causing it to begin with. Once you know the cause, you can then take the necessary steps to improve the scent of your breath. While there are many things that can cause bad breath, here are a few of the most common culprits:
Poor Oral Hygiene
The American Dental Association recommends that you brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes at a time and floss daily. If you find yourself skipping out on brushing or flossing regularly, then your bad breath may be due to a lack of adequate oral hygiene. When you don’t brush or floss as much as you are supposed to, this can cause excess bacteria to accumulate on your teeth and tongue. It can also accumulate along the gum line and cause gum disease. Bacteria produces an odor associated with bad breath, and more bacteria means a stronger odor.
Diet
The things you eat and drink can also play a role in how your breath smells. This makes sense when you consider the fact that everything you eat or drink passes through your mouth and leaves tiny particles on your tongue and teeth. Generally speaking, foods with a strong taste or smell have the ability to temporarily alter the way your breath smells. Garlic, onions, and coffee tend to produce especially offensive odors. However, bad breath due to diet can usually be managed by brushing your teeth after meals or drinks, as well as using breath mints.
Smoking
If you are a smoker, then you will need to consider the fact that smoke is regularly passing through your mouth. Cigarette smoke itself does not have a pleasant odor to most people, and this odor will remain in your breath. Additionally, smoking inhibits your body’s ability to produce enough saliva, which can make the odor worse.
Dry Mouth
When your body is unable to produce enough saliva, this is known as dry mouth. Dry mouth is problematic to your oral health because it prevents the mouth from being able to properly clean itself. This means that bacteria can accumulate easier in a person with dry mouth, which increases the potential for bad breath. If you are affected by dry mouth, the best way to manage this condition is by keeping your mouth as moist as possible by drinking frequently, chewing on gum, or sucking sugarless candies to stimulate saliva production.
Medical Conditions
Sometimes bad breath can also be due to certain medical conditions. For example, the scent of your breath may be temporarily affected if you have an infection in your nasal passages, tonsils, bronchial tubes, or upper/lower respiratory systems. In these cases, your bad breath will usually disappear once the infection has been treated. In other cases, you may experience chronic bad breath due to diabetes, kidney disease, or gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD). In these cases, the best way to treat bad breath is to first treat the condition causing it.
Did you know that according to the CDC, 47.2% of Americans over the age of 30 are affected by some form of gum disease? Part of the reason why this number is so high is because many people who have gum disease are not even aware they have it until they visit their dentist. Although gum disease does produce symptoms, these symptoms are not always noticed right away, which means that gum disease is likely to progress before it is diagnosed.
There are two different forms of gum disease: gingivitis and periodontitis. Gingivitis is the mild form of the disease that many people are unaware they have. It can produce mild symptoms like the beginnings of gum recession, red gums, and gums that bleed easily. Periodontitist is the advanced form of gum disease and is usually the stage where most cases are diagnosed. With periodontitis, the symptoms can become more disruptive causing pain, tenderness, and even tooth sensitivity from exposed tooth roots.
Just as your dentist is dedicated to preventing cavities from forming in your teeth, they are also dedicated to preventing gum disease. Luckily, there are things that you can do to improve your gum health and decrease the risk of developing gum disease. These things include:
Brushing Twice a Day
Brushing twice a day for two minutes at a time is not only beneficial to prevent cavities from forming, but it can also help to reduce the chances of developing gum disease. This is because brushing your teeth helps to remove excess plaque from the surface and along the gum line. Plaque houses thousands of bacteria responsible for both tooth decay and gum disease, so removing it is an important preventative step.
Flossing Daily
However, brushing your teeth does not always remove plaque from hard to reach places in your mouth. This is where flossing comes in. Flossing daily, preferably at night just before you brush your teeth and go to bed, helps to remove plaque and food debris from between your teeth and just below the gum line. This prevents plaque from accumulating along the gums and forming pockets of bacteria. However, to prevent irritating your gums it is important to only floss once a day.
Use Mouthwash
In addition to brushing and flossing, another thing you can do is to use mouthwash after meals. There are several over the counter mouthwashes that are designed to decrease the risk of gum disease by eliminating plaque and preventing it from accumulating. However, it is important to note that mouthwash should never be used as a replacement for brushing or flossing. Instead, it is meant to be used as an additional hygiene method.
Keep Up on Dental Cleanings
In addition to proper daily oral hygiene, you will also want to be sure that you visit your dentist every six months for a dental cleaning. In some cases, they may recommend coming in more frequently. Dental cleanings are important because they remove plaque and hardened plaque (tartar) from the surface of your teeth and along the gum line. Tartar can only be removed during a dental cleaning since it is too hard to be removed with a toothbrush.
Quit Smoking
There are several reasons why you should quit smoking, however one reason is because smoking dramatically increases your risk of developing gum disease. It also makes it harder for your gums to heal, which means gum disease is likely to advance quickly.
When having a dental restoration placed, the type of restoration will affect how many appointments are needed. You see, there are two types of dental restorations: direct and indirect. Direct restorations are those that can be completed “directly” in the mouth and will usually only require a single appointment. An example of a direct restoration are composite fillings. Conversely, indirect restorations are those that require the additional step of needing to be fabricated by a dental lab. Because of this extra step, indirect restorations generally take two appointments.
Indirect restorations include crowns, bridges, inlays, onlays, and veneers. When one of these restorations is being placed, the first appointment is used to prepare the tooth by removing damaged or decayed tissue and then reshaping the remaining enamel. To provide the dental lab with the necessary information to fabricate the restoration, a dental impression or oral scan is then taken. The final step is to place a temporary restoration.
A temporary restoration is worn for the time frame between your first and second appointments. It will then be removed during your second appointment so that the permanent restoration can be placed. Temporary restorations are essential for various reasons, including:
To Act as a Placeholder
Once your tooth has been prepared for a dental restoration, it will be a different size and/or shape. When there is suddenly space in the mouth, the surrounding teeth change their position slightly to fill in this space. However, if this happens then the permanent restoration may no longer fit. This is especially important when replacing a missing tooth with a dental bridge. Thus, a temporary restoration can be used as a placeholder to guarantee there is enough space for the permanent restoration.
To Protect the Tooth
Part of preparing your tooth for a dental restoration involves removing decayed tissue, as well as some healthy tissue in order to shape the tooth to fit a restoration. Because of this, you may have areas where the enamel is very thin or where the dentin is exposed. Both thin enamel and exposed dentin are associated with tooth sensitivity, but they can also allow bacteria to enter the tooth and cause a pulp infection. Therefore, a temporary restoration is also used as a protective barrier to the natural tooth structure.
To Preserve the Natural Gum Line
Placing a temporary restoration also helps to preserve the way that the gums fit around the tooth. Although you wouldn’t normally think of this being important, preserving the way the gums contour around the tooth gives the permanent restoration a natural appearance. Without a temporary, the gum position can change and make the final restoration stand out more.
To Maintain Function
The two main functions of your teeth are eating and speaking. However, when one or more teeth are altered for a dental restoration, these two functions can be negatively affected. For starters, chewing becomes more difficult and so can speaking properly, especially if you have multiple teeth that have been altered. Using a temporary restoration maintains the same type of function until the permanent restoration can be placed.
To Offer a Preview
One final reason for placing a temporary restoration is that it offers you a preview of the final results. By wearing the temporary restoration, you can get accustomed to the look, feel, and fit of your new restoration before the permanent restoration is placed. Keep in mind, however, that your permanent restoration will be made from high quality materials and will be more durable than your temporary.
Did you know that the human body produces about 2-4 pints of saliva a day? Saliva is produced by salivary glands in the cheeks, under the tongue, and in the jawbone by your front teeth. The amount of saliva is usually at its highest in the late afternoon and its lowest at night. Saliva production also increases when you chew. In fact, the more you chew, the more saliva you produce.
Saliva, or spit, is the clear fluid that lubricates the inside of your mouth. It is composed of water, enzymes, bacteria, viruses, mucus, blood cells, and undigested food particles. Although many people don’t give much thought about their “spit”, it actually plays many important roles. In fact saliva can help to maintain your oral health, as well as your overall health. Here are some of the things that your saliva does:
Helps with Eating
One main function of saliva that most people are familiar with is that it helps you eat. Saliva saturates the food so that it is soft enough to be chewed and swallowed. Beyond that, the enzyme amylase in saliva also helps to start digestion in the mouth by breaking down starches. Last, but certainly not least, saliva also allows you to actually taste the food you eat. This is because saliva breaks down the food into chemicals that are then processed by the taste receptor cells on your tongue. Without saliva, these foods would not break down into chemicals and the taste receptor cells would not be able to recognize them. Simply stated, food would have no taste.
Protects the Teeth
The second main function of saliva is to protect the teeth from decay. There are a few different ways that your saliva works to protect your teeth. One way is through forming a protective barrier around the teeth that contains bicarbonate. When decay-causing bacteria release acidic waste products, this bicarbonate barrier helps to neutralize the acid in order to minimize damage done to the enamel. Another way saliva protects the teeth is through its components. Saliva contains electrolytes such as calcium and phosphorus, which helps to strengthen the tooth enamel to decrease the likelihood of cavity formation.
Prevents Gum Disease
Saliva also helps to prevent gum disease by controlling the amount of bacteria in the mouth. For starters, saliva contains antimicrobials, which kill off decay-causing bacteria. Additionally, saliva also helps to decrease plaque accumulation by washing away food particles. In decreasing bacterial populations and plaque accumulation along the gum line, saliva helps to reduce the risk of developing gum disease.
Holds Dentures in Place
Although this does not apply to everyone, this really matters for those who have dentures. Saliva helps to hold dentures in place by creating suction between the denture and the gums. This stabilizes the dentures and prevents them from slipping or falling out. Saliva also acts as a lubricant to prevent denture sores on the gums.
Reduces Halitosis
Halitosis, or bad breath, occurs when there are high levels of bacteria in the mouth. Adequate saliva levels help keep the mouth clean and reduce bacterial population, which decreases bad breath.
Did you know that a dry socket is the most common complication of a tooth extraction? Although 2-5% of extracted teeth can develop a dry socket, this condition is more likely to occur in extracted wisdom teeth and can occur in 30% of wisdom tooth extractions. While you may never experience a dry socket, it is still beneficial to know a little about the condition if you plan on having a tooth extracted. Here is everything you need to know about dry sockets:
What is a dry socket?
Alveolar osteitis, also known as dry socket, is a tooth extraction complication characterized by the absence or loss of a protective blood clot. You see, when a tooth is extracted the body will naturally create a protective blood clot over the empty socket to protect the underlying tissues, bone, and nerve endings. If this clot fails to form or becomes dislodged somehow, then the tissues, bone, and nerve endings are exposed and are known as a dry socket.
What are the symptoms of a dry socket?
One of the most common symptoms of a dry socket is pain due to the exposure of the underlying structures. Pain associated with a dry socket is generally described as a throbbing pain deep within the jaw on the same side of the extraction. Some people also experience pain that radiates into the ears, eyes, temples, or neck. In addition to pain, a bad smell or taste in your mouth is another sign of a dry socket. If you think you have a dry socket, you may be able to see exposed bone in the empty tooth socket when you look in the mirror.
How is a dry socket treated?
Your dentist will first examine the extraction site for signs of infection and to confirm a dry socket. They will then clean the socket by gently flushing it with water. The empty socket will then be packed with pain medications and gauze. Most patients note that this treatment alleviates their pain almost immediately. In some cases, your dentist may also show you how to do this on your own and provide you with the necessary supplies for home care.
Who is at risk of developing a dry socket?
While having a tooth extraction is the main risk factor for developing a dry socket, there are some additional things that can increase your chances of a dry socket. For starters, people who smoke are at a higher risk because tobacco products delay healing and can interfere with clot formation. Women are also at a higher risk, especially if they take oral contraceptives. This is due to the fact that high estrogen levels can also interfere with the healing process. Dry sockets are also more likely to occur on the lower jaw and in molar extractions.
How are dry sockets prevented?
Some cases of dry sockets cannot be prevented, however there are a few things you can do to reduce the risk of developing a dry socket. The best way to prevent a dry socket is to follow your dentist’s postoperative instructions since most of these instructions are designed to prevent complications like a dry socket. These instructions also provide information on what food to eat and how to keep your mouth clean using saltwater rinses.
Practicing proper oral hygiene is the key to preventing dental issues like tooth decay and gum disease in order to maintain your oral health. According to the American Dental Association, proper oral hygiene consists of brushing twice a day and flossing once a day. In addition to completing these behaviors, it is also important to use the proper methods to get the most out of an oral hygiene routine. When it comes to flossing, the best way to do this is to prevent yourself from making these common flossing mistakes:
Not Flossing Regularly
One very common mistake people often make with flossing is that they don’t do it regularly. In fact, only about 30% of Americans floss daily, while 37% floss less than daily, and 32% never floss. Not flossing regularly unfortunately allows plaque to accumulate and only daily flossing ensures that this plaque is removed. When plaque is left in place, it can increase the risk of developing both tooth decay and gum disease.
Missing Places
In addition to not flossing regularly, another common mistake people make is that they miss certain places. One of the most common areas neglected by flossing is just behind the last molars. Oftentimes, many people don’t think this area needs to be flossed, however it is important to floss behind the molars, as well as in between all the teeth. Additionally, the sides of each tooth should be carefully flossed in addition to the gum line.
Flossing Too Hard or Too Much
Your gums should not bleed when you floss. If your gums do bleed, this can either be a sign of gum disease or a sign that you are flossing too hard. Dental floss should move gently between the teeth and along the gum line, however it should never be pulled or snapped down across the gums. Regularly hitting the gum tissue with dental floss can irritate the gum tissue and cause the gums to recede, or pull away from the gums. Therefore, you should gently move the floss between your teeth in a direction that moves away from the gums. Additionally, flossing too much can also cause gum irritation. To prevent gum irritation, it is recommended to only floss once a day.
Flossing at the Wrong Time
Although flossing at any time is better than not flossing at all, there is an ideal time frame for flossing. The best time to floss is just before going to bed since this removes any excess plaque from the teeth before saliva production is decreased while you sleep. When saliva production is decreased, the bacteria in your mouth can be more damaging to your teeth, which is why it is important to remove as much bacteria as possible. Additionally, it is also recommended to floss before you brush so that the fluoride from the toothpaste can work its way in between your teeth.
Not Using the Right Floss
Not all dental floss is the same. In fact, there are different types of dental floss that offer a range of options. Some types of dental floss are made to fit in tight spaces, while others are better for flossing between teeth with gaps between them. Doing some research to determine what type of dental floss is best for you can help to maximize your flossing routine.
Most people know that the foods they eat affect their overall health, but did you know that they can also affect your oral health? Specifically, there are certain vitamins and minerals contained in different foods that can help improve your oral health by being beneficial to your teeth. Let’s take a look at how some important vitamins and minerals affect your teeth:
Vitamin A
Vitamin A helps to maintain the health of oral soft tissues and also prevents dry mouth. Even though vitamin A does not affect the teeth directly, it still helps to prevent tooth decay by promoting saliva production and keeps the gums firmly attached to the teeth. Vitamin A is found in foods like egg yolks, liver, orange-colored fruits, fish, and leafy greens.
Calcium
Although calcium is primarily known for supporting healthy bones, it also helps to strengthen your tooth enamel. In fact, it is actually a main component of tooth enamel. Eating adequate amounts of calcium also keeps your jaw bone strong and helps support your teeth. Calcium can be found in foods such as milk, yogurt, cheese, broccoli, and salmon.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C works in a similar way to vitamin A in that it promotes soft tissue health. It has also been known to prevent gum disease as well, which allows the gums to remain attached to the teeth. The most abundant source of vitamin C is citrus fruits, but potatoes and leafy greens also contain vitamin C.
Phosphorus
This is another mineral that works with calcium to strengthen bones and teeth. Out of all the minerals found in the human body, phosphorus is the most abundant and is found primarily in the teeth. Phosphorus can be found in foods such as soybeans, seafood, lentils, beef, pork, and cheese.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D plays an important role in the body’s absorption of calcium. In fact, the human body cannot absorb calcium from the small intestine without vitamin D. This means that to get enough calcium, you also need to be sure to get enough vitamin D. However, many people are vitamin D deficient. Being deficient in vitamin D can eventually lead to bone loss. To prevent a vitamin D deficiency, a supplement may be needed. Additionally, vitamin D is found in sunlight, as well as foods such as: canned tuna, fatty fish, portobello mushrooms, and leafy greens.
Potassium
Potassium works independently from calcium and phosphorus, however it still promotes bone health by preventing bone loss. If the pH of your blood becomes too acidic, calcium can be leached from the jawbones and redirected to other parts of the body. Potassium helps neutralize the blood in order to prevent this from happening. Potassium is found in foods such as bananas, lima beans, chard, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, prunes, and avocados.
Vitamin K
Vitamin K contains osteocalcin, which is a bone-strengthening protein that prevents bone loss by blocking substances that are destructive to the bone tissue. Vitamin K is found in leafy greens like spinach, broccoli, chollards, parsley, kae, and brussel sprouts.
Toothpaste is something we use everyday, twice a day to brush our teeth. Because brushing our teeth is such a routine behavior, most of us don’t think much about toothpaste. Oftentimes, the only time you probably think about toothpaste is when you are running low and need to buy more. Yet, toothpaste is more interesting than you may think and learning a little more about it can help you pick the right toothpaste the next time you need to buy more. Here are some things that you didn’t know about toothpaste:
The first toothpaste wasn’t actually paste at all, but a powder. Back in 5000 BC, the Ancient Egyptians developed a tooth powder made of myrrh, ox hooves, powdered eggshells, and pumice. They used this abrasive powder as a way to remove debris and clean their teeth. As time went on, tooth powder remained the primary method to clean one’s teeth until around the beginning of the 20th century. However, even today some places, like India, still use tooth powder over toothpaste.
One main ingredient used in toothpaste is water. In fact, the composition of toothpaste is made up of 20-42% water. The remaining components that make up toothpaste include abrasives to remove debris and stains, humectants to retain moisture, sweeteners to add flavor, thickening agents to stabilize the mixture, and detergents to create foam to clean the teeth.
Contrary to popular belief, not all toothpastes use fluoride. However, the American Dental Association recommends using fluoridated toothpaste and encourages people to look for toothpaste that has the ADA Seal of Acceptance. The ADA recommends fluoride toothpaste because fluoride works to strengthen the enamel, reduces the risk of decay, and has antimicrobial properties to prevent gum disease.
Despite the fact that toothpaste is flavored with sweeteners, there is no sugar in toothpaste. Instead non-caloric sweeteners such as saccharin or sorbitol are used to give toothpaste its flavor.
There are different types of toothpaste that can contain additional ingredients used for certain purposes. Some examples are whitening toothpaste which contains whitening agents and are more abrasive, desensitizing toothpaste which contain potassium nitrate or strontium chloride and are less abrasive, and tartar protection toothpaste which contain pyrophosphates or zinc citrate to prevent tartar accumulation.
Abrasive agents in toothpaste help to remove stains and clean your teeth. Toothpaste abrasives can include calcium carbonate, hydrated aluminum oxides, dehydrated silica gels, magnesium carbonate, phosphate salts, and silicates. Certain toothpastes are more abrasive than others, for example whitening toothpaste is generally more abrasive than cavity protection toothpaste.
How abrasive a toothpaste is on your enamel depends on its RDA, or relative dentin abrasivity. When you brush your teeth with only water, there is an RDA of 4, however when you add baking soda there is an RDA of 7. Toothpastes can range from low to extremely abrasive and are broken down into the following: Low abrasive toothpaste is said to range from 0-70, medium abrasive is 70-100, highly abrasive is 100-150, and harmfully abrasive is 150-250. Any toothpaste approved by the ADA falls below 250.
Did you know that your mouth contains natural bacteria? While some of these bacteria can be beneficial for some purposes, other types of bacteria can be detrimental to your oral health, especially in large amounts. The most well-known dental problem associated with excess bacteria is tooth decay or dental cavities. However, excess bacteria in your mouth can cause more problems than simply tooth decay. In fact, these bacteria can also affect your gum tissue and lead to gum disease.
Gum disease affects around 47.2% of Americans over the age of 30 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In its mild form gum diseaseis referred to as gingivitis, while advanced gum disease is known as periodontitis. Not only are these two forms of gum disease differentiated by their severity, but also by the fact that gingivitis can be reversed while periodontitis cannot.
Because of this, it is important to identify gum disease while it is in its mild form so that the proper treatment can prevent it from progressing. Here are a few signs of gum disease that you should learn to recognize:
Abnormal Appearance
Healthy gums should be a coral pink color and they should be attached firmly to the teeth so that the tooth roots are completely covered. Although people with darker skin pigmentation may have gums that are a darker shade of coral, gums that are deep pink or red can indicate inflammation consistent with gum disease. Gums that are swollen or that bleed easily while brushing or flossing can also be a warning sign of gum disease. Often times, discoloration of the gum tissue and bleeding easily are early warning signs.
Gum Recession
As mentioned above, healthy gums should attach firmly to the teeth and cover the tooth roots. When the gums begin to pull away from the teeth and expose the tooth roots, this is known as gum recession. At first, the gums can appear loosely fitted around the teeth, which can cause the formation of pockets along the gum line. As gum recession progresses, the teeth may look abnormally large or longer than usual. If gum recession continues, this can eventually result in the teeth becoming loose, falling out, or shifting in position.
Pain
Many people who are diagnosed with gum disease never experience any pain. However, pain from gum disease can occur when the inflammation has become severe. In these cases, pain is usually felt in the gums, as well as when chewing. Pain from gum disease can also be experienced as tooth sensitivity. Tooth sensitivity generally occurs when gum recession has caused the tooth roots to be exposed. The tooth roots lack the same type of protection as the rest of the tooth, therefore it is easier for stimuli to reach the tooth nerve. This means that hot, cold, or sweet foods and beverages can initiate a deep, sharp pain in the tooth.
Overall when it comes to gum disease, early detection and intervention is key to having a good treatment outcome. Luckily, watching out for the signs of gum disease such as abnormal appearance, gum recession, and pain can help you to detect possible issues sooner rather than later. It is equally important, however, to continue practicing good oral habits such as: brushing twice a day, flossing daily, and visiting your dentist every six months for a cleaning and examination.
Did you know that you may not be brushing your teeth correctly? In fact, many dentists notice their patients making certain mistakes when it comes to brushing their teeth. These mistakes are fairly common and can be easily remedied by making a few minor adjustments to your brushing routine. Have you ever made any of these mistakes?
Scrubbing Your Teeth
Many people believe that scrubbing their teeth helps to remove more plaque, as well as stains. Unfortunately, this is not the case since plaque is soft and comes off easily, and most stains cannot be removed by brushing alone. When you brush your teeth too hard, you actually risk damaging your enamel by causing dental erosion. You also irritate your gums, which may cause them to recede, or pull away from the tooth.
Not only that, but the mentality of “scrubbing” also implies that your toothbrush moves back and forth over your teeth. In actuality you shouldn start at the gums and move your toothbrush up and down each tooth. Instead of scrubbing your teeth, think of it as gently massaging your teeth. Massaging your teeth in up and down circles helps you remove plaque while not damaging your enamel or gums.
Not paying attention to your toothbrush
Since your toothbrush is the main tool used to brush your teeth, it is important to select the right one. Not all toothbrushes are the same, and some can even be detrimental to your enamel. The ideal toothbrush is one that is long enough to reach the back of your mouth and that has soft bristles. To make things easy on yourself, simply look for a toothbrush with the American Dental Association seal of approval.
Once you are using the right toothbrush, it is also important to remember to replace this toothbrush when it begins to wear down which is usually about every 3-4 months. Worn toothbrushes have bristles that will appear frayed, discolored, or even bent. Not only are worn toothbrushes not very effective, but they can harbor harmful bacteria that can contribute to tooth decay. For this reason, you will also want to switch toothbrushes when you are sick.
Rushing
This is an extremely common mistake and it is one that is easy to make, especially if you are running late. In order to get the most out of your brushing routine, the ADA recommends brushing for at least two minutes twice a day. Trying to save time by shaving off a few seconds renders your brushing not as effective and in some cases, it may be like you didn’t even brush at all.
One main reason why you should not rush while brushing your teeth is because you will likely miss some key areas. In fact, dentists notice that patients often miss the inside of their mouth, as well as along the gum line. When these areas are frequently missed, they allow plaque to build up and eventually harden into tartar. Additionally, plaque accumulation along the gum line can not only cause tooth decay, but gum disease as well.
Rinsing
After brushing your teeth, you may be tempted to rinse your mouth with water. However, doing so also rinses the fluoride off your teeth. Fluoride is used in toothpaste because of its ability to strengthen tooth enamel and prevent cavities. The longer fluoride remains on your teeth, the more effective it is. Therefore, you should not rinse your mouth with water after brushing.
