7 Effective Tips on How to Keep Your Teeth and Gums Healthy

A beautiful and healthy smile suits everyone. However, there are a lot of conditions that affect your teeth and gums. Some of them can cause aesthetic problems while others can cause severe symptoms. In this article, we have gathered seven effective tips on how to keep your teeth and gums healthy.

Tooth brushing is deemed one of the most important parts of proper oral hygiene. If you don't brush your teeth properly, it can lead to bacteria overgrowth. This can result in bad breath, tooth discolorations, tooth decay, gum disease, and other complications. That's why it is extremely important to brush your teeth twice a day. However, you shouldn't overdo it since aggressive tooth brushing can make your tooth enamel thin.

Many people think that flossing is not essential if they brush their teeth. But you should know that even the most thorough tooth brushing doesn't guarantee the complete removal of all bacteria and food particles that can get stuck between your teeth. With a piece of dental floss, you can easily remove food particles and dental plaque from hard-to-reach places in your mouth. That's why you need to use dental floss at least once a day.

To have healthy teeth and gums, you need to drink at least eight glasses of water per day. The point is that dehydration can decrease saliva production that can result in dry mouth. This condition can cause bad breath, bacteria overgrowth, and a changed sense of taste. Additionally, water flushes away food particles and bacteria that accumulate in your mouth. In any case, water is essential not only for your teeth and gums but also for your overall health.

One apple a day keeps a dentist away. Even though eating apples can't replace dental check-ups, crunchy fruits and vegetables are essential for your teeth and gums. They increase salivation, remove dental plaque from your teeth, and massage your gums. Fruits and vegetables are also full of nutrients that help keep your teeth and gums strong and healthy. That's why you need to include them in your diet.

If you want to have strong teeth and healthy gums, it is better to limit the consumption of sweet, acidic, and high-pigmented foods. The point is that sweets lead to an increased number of bacteria in your oral cavity, acids soften and eat away your tooth enamel, and high-pigmented foods and drinks can make your teeth dark and stained. That's why it is better to avoid them or at least rinse your mouth after meals.

There are a lot of bad habits that can affect the condition of your teeth and gums. For example, smoking contributes to bad breath, teeth discoloration, tartar build-up, and gum disease. However, aggressive tooth brushing, gnawing hard objects, using wooden toothpicks, nail-biting, and many other bad habits can also worsen the look of your teeth and lead to unpleasant complications.

Many people think that there is no need to visit a dentist if they don't have any symptoms. But you should understand that most oral issues can develop asymptomatically in the initial stages. That point is that it is much easier to treat them when they haven't severely damaged your teeth and gums yet. So you need to visit a general dentist twice a year for exams and treatment if needed.

If you want to keep your teeth and gums healthy, you need to maintain proper oral hygiene, get rid of bad habits, follow a healthy diet, and visit a dentist regularly. The aforementioned tips can help you avoid many oral issues and make your smile gorgeous.