We know we bang on about dental hygiene all the time, on our website, our social media and, of course, when you come to see us, but it’s because dental hygiene is the foundation of your oral health.

We find that repetition is key to the message of the importance of dental hygiene sinking in and being put into action. So at the risk of repeating ourselves, yet again, let’s take another look at why cleaning your teeth is so important and how to do it.

Plaque never stops and neither should you

When you clean your teeth, what you are aiming to do is brush away the bacterial plaque that builds up on your teeth, gums and soft parts of your mouth. Plaque never stops feeding on the sugars in your saliva and using that energy to reproduce itself. It’s a busy bacterium, and as it goes about eating and making little copies of itself, it also gives off acids. The acid is the problem, not the bacteria in themselves. It eats away at your tooth enamel, creating little holes for decay causing bacteria to get into your teeth.

Those acids also irritate and inflame your gums, causing them to bleed and pull away from your teeth. Plaque can then get underneath and start corroding your tooth roots and jawbone.

Whether it’s gum disease or tooth decay, the final end is your teeth falling out.

Your dental hygiene routine

You need to brush your teeth twice a day for 2 minutes. The best thing to do is get a soft-bristled brush, and gently brush the plaque away. If you have a new electric toothbrush, it can count down those 2 minutes in 30 second increments, making sure you brush each half of each arch thoroughly before moving onto the next. Using a fluoride toothpaste helps to strengthen the teeth against decay.

Back this up with flossing and interdental brushes to remove plaque and trapped food from between the teeth. Do this at least once a day.

And don’t forget to come to our hygienist twice a day for a deep clean to remove plaque from all those places your brush doesn’t reach so well.

The root cause of all dental issues is not having clean teeth. It’s as simple as that. Clean teeth cannot decay or get gum disease. Yet, considering how simple this premise is, it’s amazing how hard it can be for some people to keep their teeth clean. That’s why at Orpington Dental we like to assist you with your dental hygiene in Orpington by offering you sessions with our dental hygienist.

Why do teeth need cleaning so much?

The thing with our bodies is that we are more of a city than a single organism. Our skin, hair, insides and our mouths are the home for millions of harmless and helpful organisms – and some that are not so helpful. Our mouths are home to harmless bacteria that feed on the sugars that get left behind when we have eaten or drunk something. The more they feed, the more they breed and in very little time at all, they start to build up on the teeth in a sticky layer known as dental plaque. If you eat something particularly sugary, you will soon feel the plaque growing in ridges across your teeth.

The bacteria give off acids that attack the teeth and gums. The acids eat into tooth enamel, creating holes through which decay-causing bacteria can enter, and that’s when you will need a filling.

The acids irritate the gums, which become inflamed and can start to bleed easily, such as when you brush your teeth. This is the beginnings of gum disease, which, if not treated, will go on to eat into the bone that holds the teeth in place. They can become loose and fall out.

Your part in dental hygiene

You need to remove the build-up of plaque twice a day, preferably with a soft-bristled brush and fluoride toothpaste. You can use dental floss and interdental brushes to get between the teeth and remove any bits of stuck food.

Twice a year, you need to come to the hygienist, who can get rid of any hardened plaque that you have missed. The hygienist can also show you more effective ways to brush your teeth.

There’s nothing quite so likely to put the kibosh on a date than finally getting up close and personal with Mr or Mrs Gorgeous only to discover they don’t have very good dental hygiene.

They may be the most charming, witty and generous of dates but if, as you’ve gazed at them over coffee, cocktails, or even dinner, you’ve noticed that their teeth have that yellow build-up between them, and are stained, it could be a deal breaker. Your smile is top of the list of things people notice when they meet you for the first time.

It’s hard to kiss someone who hasn’t been taking care of their teeth. So, you shake hands instead and go back to the internet hoping for someone who pays attention to their dental hygiene in Orpington. Or maybe you have been the person no one can bring themselves to kiss. If it’s been so long since you had a good scale and polish that you’ve forgotten what clean teeth look like, take a long look in the mirror and see if you don’t need some help.

Disgust is a hardwired reaction to keep us away from things that might infect us, and grotty teeth can become breeding grounds of disease. It is almost impossible to over-ride the feeling of disgust, so deeply is it hardwired into our reactions.

Fortunately, good dental hygiene in Orpington is easy with us at Orpington Dental Care. Just book an appointment to get a good scale and polish and you can easily get rid of plaque and tartar where decay and gum disease-causing bacteria build up. This will do away with any bad breath associated with poor dental hygiene. If you haven’t had a scale and polish in a while, you might need more than one appointment. Then, to keep on top of it, you need to brush twice a day at home with a good fluoride toothpaste, and use floss and interdental brushes to clean between your teeth. Your check-up will flag up any remedial dentistry you need, and then you will be good to go back out into the world of smiling at people you don’t know and hopefully, this time, kissing a few of them too.

Dental hygiene involves the relationship between oral health care and overall body health. Good oral hygiene starts at home, but it has to be combined with regular visits to the dentist and the dental hygienist for check-ups and cleanings.

At Orpington Dental in Orpington, we offer a wider range of dental hygiene services such as check-ups, gum disease treatment as well as oral cancer screenings. However, the most important preventive measure against gum disease and tooth decay is regular cleanings. We believe that prevention is better than cure, therefore, we urge our patients to visit the practice regularly for cleanings in order to avoid oral complications and unnecessary (as well as expensive) treatment in the future.

Our services

At our practice, dental hygiene treatment is delivered by our experienced hygienists, who will remove any plaque and tartar residue from your teeth and gums. Plaque is a deposit made of food bacteria that tends to stick to the teeth. If left untreated it turns into tartar, a calcified form of plaque. Generally, dental plaque can be removed by brushing our teeth and flossing on daily basis, however, we are not always capable of reaching small corners and crevices in our mouth, where it tends to accumulate.

Our hygienist will use special equipment to scrape the plaque off your teeth and beneath your gum line and then will clean your teeth with special pastes. Once finished, your teeth will be polished. This is really important because polishing can help keep plaque away from your teeth for longer.

An important aspect of the hygienist’s role in our practice, is to show our patients how to look after of their teeth so they remain free from bacteria and plaque. They will offer advice on the best brushing technique as well as tips on flossing and using specialised brushes.

Get in touch

At our practice, we are also happy to recommend and provide preventive treatments such as fluoride treatments and gum disease treatments in order to keep your teeth and gums strong and disease-free. Contact us today to schedule a cleaning or consultation appointment with one of our dentists.