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With proper preventive care, you can ensure that your smile will be sparkling all year long. Your mouth is the gateway to your body, which means that the state of your mouth directly affects your overall health. Preventive dentistry emphasizes the importance of ongoing oral hygiene procedures and daily practices to prevent tooth decay and other dental diseases and conditions that could potentially lead to general health complications. By keeping up with routine dental visits and cleanings, along with good oral hygiene practice at home, you can ensure a healthy smile for life. At-Home Dental Care is Key A key part of maintaining proper oral hygiene, brushing and flossing at least twice a day to remove dental plaque will help prevent tooth decay. Plaque is a film-like coating that forms on your teeth and, if not removed, it can build up and produce dental tartar, a hardened, sticky substance with acid-producing bacteria that cause decay and lead to gum disease. Brushing your teeth at least twice a day with fluoride toothpaste is arguably the most essential component to the maintenance of good oral health. The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends brushing your teeth at least twice a day for approximately two minutes, preferably after eating. The foods that we eat often contain sugars and starches. When plaque combines with these sugars and starches, an acid is produced that attacks tooth enamel and causes tooth decay. Brushing your teeth removes plaque from the tooth surfaces while flossing removes plaque from in between the teeth. Flossing in between your teeth is also an essential part of the oral hygiene practice for avoiding gum disease and preventing tooth decay. Many people do not realize the importance of flossing and often forego the hygienic practice, believing that tooth brushing is an adequate enough practice for removing plaque. Tooth decay is a serious oral health concern that is caused by a buildup of plaque. Flossing is not hard, does not take much time and should be performed daily to eliminate plaque problems. Laser Therapy for Prevention and Treatment With new advancements in dentistry, the treatment and prevention of gum disease is now more available than ever before. Laser therapy is one of the most revolutionary developments in gum treatment. A minimally invasive laser therapy for the treatment of periodontal disease is a proven alternative to some of the more traditional surgical procedures associated with periodontal treatment. Some of the benefits of laser therapy include: * Most procedures can be done without anesthesia, needles or patient trauma
* Numerous soft tissue procedures are effectively performed with little or no bleeding
* Healing time is drastically reduced when compared to surgical treatment In addition to daily brushing and flossing, make sure to set up an appointment with your dentist in Houston, TX every six months to maintain proper oral health care. Your dentist will be able to put together an appropriate dental hygiene plan to help keep you smiling longer!
Dr. Brent Browning, dentist in Houston, is a solo practitioner and started his practice in 1979 in Northwest Houston. He provides family dentistry, general dentistry and cosmetic dentistry services, along with orthodontics in Houston.
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