Getting older is obviously not fun, but it is something everyone has to deal with. As you grow older, dental care and oral hygiene becomes more important. Actually, dental care becomes even more difficult when you reach a certain age. You will have to make a lot of effort to keep your smile strong. It is the time when family dentistry plays an important role. You are required to visit dental clinic on the regular basis for oral health checkup.
Oral Care Tips for Elderly
In order to keep your teeth in healthy condition later, you have to care for them now. If you have are avoiding brushing more than once a day, or flossing your teeth once in a blue moon, now is the time to change this habit. Maintaining good oral health now will ensure that your teeth will serve you well into your twilight years. Be watchful about below mentioned dental problems:
Darkened teeth: Stain causing foods and drinks can ultimately darken your teeth for the lifetime. You are required to pay attention over what you eat to maintain good oral health in the future.
Diminished taste: Aging, diseases and medications can actually diminish your taste. Things will not taste same as they used to be. You should visit a dental clinic for treatment.
Dry mouth: Dry mouth is another problem that you might have to deal with. Certain medical conditions like diabetes and cancer reduce saliva generation that result in dry mouth.
Root decay: Root decay is not a new oral problem. However, it becomes even more difficult to deal as you get older. It is possible to avoid this problem by taking good care of teeth.
Gum disease: Plaque buildup can result in decay and receding gums. This will eventually result in toothache.
Teeth sensitivity: Teeth become sensitive as you grow older. Eating or drinking hot, cold, sweet and sour things will trigger pain in your teeth. However, teeth sensitivity is curable and can be avoided by taking good care of teeth when you are young.
Tooth loss: If you do not take care of your teeth while you are young, you will lose them –for sure.
Visiting dental clinic
As you age, it becomes essential to visit dentist to ensure better oral health. You should schedule dental checkups and cleaning in every 6 months. It is possible to avoid a lot of oral problems with regular dental checkups.
Should you floss before or after brushing your teeth?
Even if you have brushing and flossing your teeth for years, you might get surprised to learn that you are not doing it properly. People often ask their pediatric dentist about the sequence of brushing and flossing. Well, sequence does not make much difference as long as you are doing the job right. Flossing and brushing is the ideal way of removing decay-causing plaque that accrues on your teeth. These actions help you in maintaining best oral health.
Flossing and brushing
Many dental experts recommend flossing before brushing, so that people will not skip flossing. However, some dentists stress on flossing after brushing, because this helps the fluoride present in the toothpaste work between the teeth. Whether you brush first or floss finish, there is no difference in the effectiveness of the process. This is merely a matter of convenience.
Best time to floss
You can floss at night, morning or afternoon. Time doesn’t matter as long as you floss at least once in a day. Flossing minimize the buildup of bacteria on teeth. You just have to floss anytime in 24 hours. The bacteria get cling around teeth and flossing stir them off. If you stir them off within 24 hours, they will not cause any serious damage to your teeth.
Best time to brush
Unlike flossing, you should brush your teeth twice a day. It takes 24 hours to for plaque to buildup in your mouth. If you brush twice a day, you clean the plaque before accumulation. This prevents your teeth from damage that plaque could cause (such as cavities and gum diseases).
There are many reasons to brush twice a day, some of them are:
- Maintaining good oral health
- Avoiding bad breathe problem and always smell good
- Preventing plaque buildup
- Preventing gum diseases
- Getting white and clean teeth
When you brush your teeth, you get rid of the food deposits, bacteria, plaque and other type of build-up. It is important to swipe-out these things before they start decaying inside your mouth. Once the decay starts, it will cause significant amount of damage to your teeth and gums.
Oral hygiene is very much important for overall health. Along with following a healthy oral care routine, you should visit a dental clinic every month. It is important to get your teeth professionally checked and cleaned on the regular basis.
