3 Things to Understand About Preventive Oral Health Care

It’s a well-known fact that when it comes to your dental health, preventive care is absolutely essential. While the level of care available in the United States is very high, avoiding medical issues will always be safer and more comfortable than only seeking help once there is a major issue.

To this end, if you want to keep your teeth and gums healthy, the single most important thing you can do is practice preventive oral health — but what does preventive care mean when it comes to oral health, and what does it involve?

Here are three things you need to understand about what preventive care is — and isn’t — if you want to take the best possible care of yourself.

1. Preventive Care Doesn’t Mean You Avoid the Dentist

When we think of preventive care, we usually think of things that we can do on our own to avoid having to get professional help: things like diet, exercise, and cleaning that maintain good oral hygiene.

But perhaps the most important thing to understand about preventive dental care is that it doesn’t mean you can skip your dental appointments. Getting high quality preventive care from Ocean Dental Studio in Boynton Beach in the form of nightguards and cleaning are still key for avoiding major oral health problems.

2. Preventive Care Might Involve Major Procedures

Just as preventive care doesn’t mean you get out of visiting the dentist, it also doesn’t guarantee that you will completely avoid major procedures. But it does mean that you will limit the number of invasive oral health procedures you have to undergo over the course of your life.

For example, getting your wisdom teeth pulled out in your early twenties might seem like a major imposition, but if your wisdom teeth are impacted then getting them pulled early will spare you far more pain than waiting until they start causing major problems for the rest of your teeth.
Similarly, regular professional cleaning is essential for removing plaque that can harden into tartar and lead to cavities or gum disease if it is allowed to build up.

3. Preventive Care is a Partnership

While it is true that your dentist plays a major role in helping avoid serious oral health problems, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a role for you to play as well. In fact, the person who will have the biggest impact on your oral health is you.

In a way, your mouth is a bit like your car: just because you go for regular tune-ups and get your mechanic to take care of repairs doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do your part to maintain it as well. To this end, you should make sure you:

• Brush twice a day
• Floss regularly
• Avoid sugary drinks
• Limit or eliminate your tobacco use

At its heart, preventive health is maintaining good oral hygiene and catching problems before they get out of hand.

While there is a lot you can do on your own to keep your teeth and gums in good condition, regular check-ups with your local dentist and proactive procedures to avoid degeneration of teeth and gums are crucial as well. So if it’s been awhile since you last saw the dentist, book an appointment today!

This is a guest blog entry.