The job of our Chepstow hygienists is to professionally clean and polish your teeth (this is sometimes called ‘scaling and polishing’). Their job also involves educating patients about the best ways to help keep their teeth plaque free.
Combining regular hygienist appointments with your own home care is the best way to maintain a healthy mouth, keep your teeth strong and give you fresher breath. Neglecting your gums can lead to poor gum health, which can cause heart problems later on in life.
Hygienist training is focused on preventing gum disease and tooth decay by removing deposits of tartar that build up on the teeth. By teaching you how to prevent it collecting on your teeth in the future, you will be able to slow the process of gum disease.
Booking hygienist appointments for your children will help keep their teeth clean and help to educate them on the best way to brush.
A great way to reduce tooth decay is to limit the amount of sugar in your diet, as well as the amount of times you eat throughout the day.
Periodontal disease is the Number One cause of tooth loss amongst adults. This is because a certain number of people (15-20%) have immune systems that overreact to the bad bacteria in their mouths. When this overreaction occurs, the immune system attacks and breaks down the bone and tissue that surround the tooth. This destruction is not predictable and can occur sporadically. None of us knows if we are part of this 15-20% because we can’t usually feel or notice the onset of gum and bone (periodontal) disease. Both adults and children should be routinely checked for gum disease.
Keep in mind that healthy gums DON’T BLEED. You are the key player on the hygiene team. If you don’t do the essential daily brushing and flossing, the rest of your dental team (the dentist and hygienist) is playing short-handed. And sometimes with everyone fighting the good fight, stubborn plaque and bacteria will require some new maintenance techniques for battling gum infection.
GUM DISEASE IS NOT CURABLE,
BUT IT IS TREATABLE,
AND IN MOST CASES, CONTROLLABLE
As a result of improved oral hygiene and fluoride, more people are keeping their own teeth into old age but in order to continue to maintain healthy teeth and gums, a regime of brushing and rinsing twice a day should be combined with interdental brushing – cleaning between the teeth.
The major cause of tooth decay and gum disease is plaque. The formation of plaque is continuous and its growth cannot be stopped. Whilst brushing controls plaque formation around the surfaces of your teeth, it does not reach between your teeth and that’s why interdental brushing once a day is so crucial.
Cleaning between your teeth is made possible by the use of the following:
Consult your dentist and hygienist to learn more about the right method of interdental brushing for you
Contact the practice to book a hygiene appointment. If you are worried about gum disease call us today and we will book you in with one of our dentists.
