One of the best things you can do for your health is to take care of your teeth. Everyone should have a routine for brushing, flossing, and gargling with mouthwash. You should also see your dentist regularly to keep your teeth healthy.
What Does General Dentistry Mean?
It’s easy to forget what dentists are trained to do now that so many offer cosmetic and restorative dentistry services like tooth whitening and dental implants. General dentistry, also called preventive dentistry, focuses on ensuring that small problems don’t turn into big ones. Normal dentists protect our smiles by filling cavities, doing root canals, and cleaning our teeth regularly.
Why Do We Need A Licensed General Dentist?
Even if you brush, floss, gargle, and take good care of your teeth, plaque and tartar can form around and under your gum line. Only a licensed dentist or dental hygienist has the training and tools to remove these potentially harmful deposits before they do serious damage. During an exam, your dentist may also floss and polish your teeth to eliminate food particles that can mix with bacteria to make plaque.
What Can You Hope for?
Most dental checkups are just routine examinations of your teeth to look for problems that, if left untreated, could lead to bigger problems. If you take good care of your teeth and have never had oral problems before, your dentist probably won’t find anything. They will still clean it thoroughly, of course. What gives?
Gum disease, which can be stopped, is the leading cause of tooth loss worldwide. If it is caught early enough, common dental procedures can treat it successfully. But to figure out what’s wrong, your dentist will probably take X-rays of your teeth to see if any bone has been lost.
Gingivitis & Periodontitis
Gingivitis is a mild form of gum disease that can often be treated with a simple cleaning and a more thorough routine for brushing and flossing your teeth. In contrast, periodontitis is a much more serious disease that destroys the bone and tissue that hold our teeth in place. To save infected teeth, general dentistry procedures like scaling and root planning may be used.
Keeping A Schedule
As helpful as the above services and procedures may be, they will only work if you get to the dentist on time. A recent survey found that more than one-third of adults don’t attend appointments. It makes sense that tooth loss is so common in the U.S. At the last count, nearly 180 million Americans were missing at least one tooth, and almost 40 million had no teeth. It’s easy to put off going to the dentist if you’re not in pain or have any obvious problems. Maybe it doesn’t fit into your busy schedule, you don’t want to spend the money, or you get nervous about going to the dentist. None of these are good enough to keep you from getting the dental care you need to keep your mouth healthy and your smile looking good.
Seeing your general dentist for regular checkups is important for several reasons. The most important benefit is probably that you can catch problems early before they get worse and hurt your oral health. Cavities and gum disease are problems that can cause a lot of damage to your mouth if you don’t treat them. However, if you take care of them quickly, they may go away with a fluoride treatment or a change in how you clean your teeth. Seeing your dentist every six months is a great way to avoid treatments like fillings, crowns, and root canals, as well as the costs and time commitments that come with them.
Regular Dental Check Up
Regular checkups are also good because they make your smile look better and brighter. Even if you take the best care of your teeth at home, you can’t eliminate all the plaque and tartar that builds up on your teeth. Professional cleanings get rid of buildup, which makes your smile look better. They also get rid of harmful and smelly bacteria in your mouth.
Taking care of your teeth regularly is also good for your overall health. Oral problems can affect your overall health by letting harmful bacteria into your body, which can spread and cause some health problems. Also, your dentist may notice signs of health problems you don’t know you have, like cancer, disease, or a lack of nutrients.
Visit your general dentist often to take care of your smile. Don’t use excuses to keep yourself from getting the benefits that dentistry has to offer.