Happy New Year! With a new year upon us I thought it would be a great idea to breifly outline a cleaning routine that you can do to maintain your oral hygiene throughout 2018 and hopefully prevent any unexpected dental visits.
What you will need:
Soft bristled toothbrush
Fluoridated toothpaste
Floss or interdental brushes (piksters or similar brand)
Cleaning Routine (Morning):
1. Place a pea sized amount of toothpaste on the toothbrush
2. Gently wet the toothpaste
3. Place toothbrush on your back tooth on one side with the bristles facing towards the gum
4. Gentle circular motions slowly moving forward from tooth to tooth
5. When you arrive at your back left tooth then start on the inside with the bristles facing towards the gum
6. Circular motions slowly moving from tooth to tooth towards the opposite side
7. When done do the same on the bottom teeth.
Once you finish brushing spit out as much toothpaste as you can and then DON'T RINSE. Your morning clean is done! This should take around 2.5 minutes.
Cleaning Routine (Evening):
1. Brush your teeth exactly the same as you did in the morning. (refer to instructions above)
2. Spit DON'T RINSE
3. Get your interdental brush or floss and clean between each individual tooth
4. Spit and DON'T RINSE
Cleaning done for the day!
Common questions I get asked:
1. If my gums bleed should I still brush? - YES! Bleeding gums are a sign of infection and you must clean the infection off the gums to stop the bleeding. Usually, if you don't clean between your teeth, this is where you will find most of the bleeding. By following the above routine the bleeding should disappear within a couple of weeks. If not you may need a more thorough clean from a dentist.
2. Do I really need to clean in between my teeth? - YES! Food and bacteria easily get stuck and can cause gum problems or even worse tooth decay.
3. Which is better Electric or normal toothbrush? Electric toothbrushes have the advantage as all you need to do is hold the brush against the tooth and the end of the brush does all the movement for you. This reduces the chance for us to miss areas. If you have a good technique with your regular toothbrush you can get just as good a clean.
4. What should I get? A soft, medium or hard toothbrush? - A soft toothbrush is all you need. Medium or hard toothbrushes can damage your teeth leading to sensitive teeth, fillings required or I have also seen some patients brush into their nerves!
I hope this helps with your cleaning to keep you smiling throughout 2018 and beyond.