Why is Dental Hygiene Important?

Looking after your health is a key ingredient in the recipe for a healthy and happy life. If you’re able to take a preemptive approach to your mental and physical health, you’ll very likely have more energy to enjoy your favorite activities, experience less anxiety, and relish more opportunities in later life.

Dental hygiene is a big part of your overall health, and ignoring it can result in some incredibly unpleasant consequences, such as tooth decay, gum disease, and a myriad of other painful and even permanent problems.

Unfortunately, many people fail to recognize the importance of dental hygiene, forgoing regular brushing, flossing, and appointments with the dentist, leading to issues with their smile, expensive medical bills, and a decline in overall wellbeing.

While the body has some fairly good natural defense systems in place when it comes to oral hygiene, it will likely struggle against modern diets, so it’s important to support your body and practice an effective oral hygiene routine on a regular basis.

Here are some of the top reasons for looking after your dental hygiene and a few tips you can consider if you feel like you need to improve your efforts. 

Preserving Overall Health

Your oral hygiene is linked to your overall health. Your mouth is not only the gateway through which vital nutrients can reach your organs and sustain your body, but you need it for talking and breathing – and if it’s compromised in any way, it can cause you a great deal of strife.

Moreover, good oral health can support your body should you need to fight off other diseases, lowering the risk of further complications.

Preventing Bad Breath

Getting stuck with bad breath is nobody’s idea of a fun time. Persistent bad breath can cause some real issues in terms of socializing, working, and your ability to enjoy your everyday life.

However, good dental hygiene can help you combat bad breath and reduce the odds of you contracting oral diseases at the same time.

Chewing gum won’t make the grade if you’re failing to practice good oral health routines; it’ll only mask the smell at best, which could prove problematic if it conceals the presence of a larger issue, such as tooth decay. 

Combatting Tooth Decay

Proper oral hygiene is vital in preventing tooth decay – a problem that can lead to long-lasting and extremely serious complications. Avoiding tooth decay requires you to take a preemptive approach to your oral hygiene, which means regular brushing and flossing (twice a day), visiting your dentist for checkups, using mouthwash, taking care not to consume too much sugar and sticky, hard foods, and using the right toothpaste.

If you’re regularly snacking on potentially problematic foods and drinks, like hard-boiled candy, popcorn, crackers, chips, and sugary sodas, it’s worth remembering to brush your teeth afterward, just to be on the safe side. Sometimes, plaque can build up to dangerous levels before it starts causing noticeable issues. By then, it might be too late to prevent tooth decay.

If you’re not sure what to do to improve your current situation, don’t hesitate to let your friendly Asheville dentist know, they’ll be able to put your mind at ease and help you get back on the track that suits you and your oral health best.

If you suspect you’re experiencing tooth decay, it’s best to contact your dentist as soon as you can, as this can help you prevent smaller problems from spiraling out of control in the future. 

Avoiding Tooth Loss

If you’ve ever lost a tooth, you’ll probably know what an alarming experience it can be; if you haven’t, it’s best to keep it that way by continuing to maintain your oral hygiene.

Regular dental checkups can be instrumental in the early detection of tooth loss, and if it is discovered earlier on, steps can be taken to prevent it from happening.

According to the CDC, tooth decay is among the most common of all oral health problems in the USA, and this can often lead to tooth loss and, in some extreme cases, cancer.

When you continue to brush your teeth every day, you instantly improve your odds of avoiding this highly stressful event. 

Protecting Your Smile

Good oral hygiene practices not only protect your teeth, but they protect your overall smile too. Unfortunately, many people are embarrassed about their smile, and this is often a result of their persistently poor oral hygiene (not always, by any means), which is a shame when it can be prevented with a little care and attention.

Your smile can say a lot about you, so it makes sense to want to protect it. In this regard, dental hygiene has the potential to be both physically and mentally beneficial, serving to improve your everyday quality of life.

Also, if you grind your teeth and it’s affecting the shape of your smile, make sure you let your dentist know, as they’ll be able to make you a tooth guard to wear at night (known as a nightguard). It’s a totally painless and non-invasive procedure, so there’s no need to panic if you’re feeling nervous about having to experience pain.

In fact, dentistry has come a long way in recent years, and even some of the more extensive operations are nowhere near as painful as they once were. If you have any concerns about this, talk it through with your dentist – they can likely make you feel better.

Developing a Routine

Once you get into the swing of a good routine, it’s easy to stick to. This makes regular dental hygiene important, as it sets you up for the future.

You don’t have to worry about your dental hygiene too much once you’ve got a routine to fall back on, so why not give yourself the peace of mind that you deserve and develop one that works for you today? Your dentist can help you with this, so remember to ask them for advice if you need it.