Keep It Clean with Dental Hygiene

Good oral hygiene helps keep your teeth healthy and happy throughout your entire life and can help ensure that you get to keep your regular teeth for as long as possible. While dentistry has come far with implants and dentures, there is no substitute for having your own, natural teeth make up your signature smile.  

Good oral hygiene also ensures that you don't get an oral infection that can cause gingivitis or periodontal disease. These diseases often can chew into the bone structure of your jaws and in the most severe cases can event enter your bloodstream and affect the health of the rest of your body.

Good oral health and dental care prevent these types of diseases for likely ever occur to you in the first place.

Your oral health care regimen at home should consist of three key parts daily, and those are as follows:

• Brushing: Brushing your teeth twice per day for at least two minutes at a time with a fluoridated toothpaste on a medium-sized, soft-bristled brush that is approved by the American Dental Association (ADA) is key to helping ensure that your mouth oral health remains at a premium daily.
• Flossing: Flossing should occur at least once per day and removes food particles stuck between your teeth that a regular toothbrush might not pick up as easily. Be sure to floss between each tooth every day to remove all potentially-caught food particles before they can break down and cause decay or even tooth rot.
• Swishing: Swishing with an American Dental Association (ADA) approved mouthwash every day is another great way to finish killing off germs and ensuring that your mouth remains free from many harmful bacteria as possible. Swishing is best done after your brushing and flossing to clean out any sugars or bacteria that may have got left behind.

These three oral health precautions can get taken every day home to ensure that your oral health is at a premium.

Your home care routine alone cannot ensure that your oral health remains a premium. Another key to your oral health is regular dental visits for thorough cleanings. These cleanings are key to keeping your oral health in premium condition.

The following are some of the exact procedures you can expect to get when you have your standard dental cleaning:

• Comprehensive check of the health of your entire mouth
• Check of each tooth to ensure no cavities have formed
• Removal of plaque and tartar along the gum line
• Thorough cleaning of each tooth
• Fluoride treatment if you opt for it (highly recommended for everyone - especially for children under 18 years of age)
• X-Rays (once per year) if they are due

These are generally the steps that are taken to check your oral health during your regular semi-annual dental cleanings. If you need further services rendered, the dentist can recommend them at the time of your visit.

The cost of a regular dental cleaning runs between $80 and $175 per cleaning (visit) depending on your area, location, dentist, insurance, and services performed.