You Can Slow Down Dental Plaque
April 25, 2018
Do you know that feeling in your mouth when your teeth just feel unclean? Dental plaque is the sticky, biofilm that forms on your teeth and gums that can leave your mouth with that uncomfortable, unclean feeling. Plaque contains harmful bacteria, and plaque can harden into tartar. The harmful bacteria in plaque and tartar is the bacteria that attacks your teeth and gums to cause tooth decay and gum disease. While plaque can be removed during your hygiene routine at home, tartar cannot be removed through brushing and flossing. Tartar can be removed during a professional dental cleaning. You can slow down the build up of dental plaque, which can help you keep your smile healthy.
Be Vigilant About Your Oral Hygiene
Even if you won’t admit it to your dentist or dental hygienist, you have probably skipped a brushing or flossing session at least once in your life. Nobody is perfect and life happens. However, there is some bad news about skipping even just one morning or night of brushing. Plaque begins to harden into tartar in about 48 hours. That is not a big window for tartar to build up on your teeth. Remember that you cannot remove tartar buildup on your own. While skipping an oral hygiene session is problematic, even worse may be missing areas of your mouth during your brushing. Many people miss surfaces of the teeth in the back of their mouth or the surfaces that face the tongue. Missing areas of the mouth consistently may give plaque a long time to calcify into tartar.
Water Helps Rinse It Away
Saliva is your body’s natural rinsing agent. It helps keep the oral bacteria moving instead of building up along your gums and on the surfaces of your teeth. Drinking water helps to induce salival production. Water itself can help to rinse away harmful bacteria in your mouth. If you cannot follow every meal with brushing and flossing, at least follow it with a drink of water. It can help to make sure you aren’t left with too many leftovers.
We Can Help You Achieve a Healthier Smile.
Slowing down plaque means slowing down tooth decay. To schedule an appointment , call Cosmetic & Implant Dentistry of Kansas City, MO, today at 816-427-4018.