Your mouth plays an important role in everyday life. It allows you to eat, talk and express emotion. Keeping your teeth, gums and mouth healthy is an essential part of living a healthy life. Oral health has been linked to many chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
Follows these 5 simple tips to keep your teeth and gums healthy.
- Visit your dentist regularly. Talk to your dentist about how often you should visit. If you’re a smoker, diabetic or if you a history of cavities, you may have to visit the dentist more often.
- Brush your teeth twice a day. To help maintain your beautiful smile, brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes. Brushing your teeth twice a day will help prevent the build up of plaques, cavities and gingivitis.
- Floss daily. Flossing is an essential part of cleaning your teeth. Flossing removes food particles that your toothbrush cannot get. The proper way to floss your teeth is to floss between your teeth in a zig-zag motion. When flossing, make sure you wrap the floss around the side of the tooth. Slide the floss up and down against the tooth surface and the gum line with a clean section of floss. The gum line is where periodontal disease often begins.
- Rinse with mouthwash. Talk to your dentist about a mouthwash that would be good for you. Mouthwash can help prevent gum disease like gingivitis.
- Chew sugar-free gum. Chewing gum stimulates saliva, which helps fight cavities, neutralizes plaque acids, re-mineralize enamel and washes away food particles.