A major part of maintaining a healthy, beautiful smile includes visiting our office regularly – typically once every six months – for a dental cleaning and checkup. However, do you know the best way to promote a healthy smile when you’re away from our practice? We realize patients often feel strongly about taking good care of their teeth but may not have all of the education necessary to practice the best home hygiene possible. Rather than keeping you in the dark on these very important details, we have gathered some important dental tips for a healthy smile to help you avoid problems like cavities and gum disease.
Dental Tips
Tip #1: Your Smile Is What You Eat
The old adage “you are what you eat” applies to your smile, as well. Keep in mind good foods and bad foods, and remember to rinse your mouth after meals to promote a healthy smile. Good foods consist primarily of those high in Vitamin C, protein, and calcium. The not so great? Anything acidic, high in sugar, or darkly pigmented, all of which may either erode your tooth tissue or lead to staining.
Tip #2: Brush, Brush, Brush
You should brush your teeth at least twice daily, two minutes each time you brush. What about the advice you have heard regarding brushing after every meal? You should definitely do that too, but rinse first and brush within approximately a half hour to avoid grinding food particles into your teeth.
Tip #3: Use the Right Brush
Choose a soft-bristle nylon brush – nothing harder. This will allow you to remove food particles and plaque without physically damaging your teeth.
Tip #4: Floss That Smile
Using a portion of floss that’s approximately 1 ½ feet in length, floss between all of your teeth. Gently slide the floss between teeth, curve it around one of the two teeth, scrape it up and down along the tooth, and then repeat this on the other tooth.
ABOUT YOUR HOUSTON DENTIST:
At Healthy Smiles Family Dentistry in Houston, TX, Dr. Amy Vlachakis (pronounced Vla-ha-kiss) and her dedicated staff strive to make everyone feel like family, while providing top-notch general, cosmetic, and family dentistry services to patients of all ages. To learn more, or to schedule a consultation, call our Houston dentist office today at (281) 974-4494. Located in Memorial City Plaza, we proudly serve patients throughout Houston, Memorial City, Bunker Hill, West Beltway, City Center, Hedwig Village, and all surrounding communities.
