There are many ways that a general dentist can promote gum health. Your gums play an important role in supporting your teeth and providing a barrier against harmful bacteria, so it is critical that they remain healthy and strong. Keeping your gums healthy can also help prevent tooth loss and decrease heart attack risk. The plaque and tartar on your gums can also accumulate in your arteries, which can cause a heart attack. Maintaining healthy gums also combats bad breath, tooth decay, and gum disease. Let's take a closer look at the importance of gum health and what it means for your overall oral well-being.
Never underestimate the value of professional dental cleaning. Your first professional cleaning includes removing all traces of plaque, tartar, and bacteria. This procedure is known as scaling and root planing. Scaling will remove tartar and bacteria from the surfaces of your teeth and beneath your gums. Root planing will remove the bacteria produced by inflammation, smooth the root surfaces, discourage the further buildup of tartar and bacteria, and allow proper healing. Your dentist may use instruments, a laser, or an ultrasonic device to perform the procedure.
Dental restoration refers to getting your teeth back to proper function. Misaligned teeth or dental crowns, bridges, or other dental restorations that fit poorly may irritate your gums and make it harder to remove plaque during daily brushing and flossing. If there are problems with your teeth or dental restorations that contribute to your gum health issues, your dentist may recommend fixing these problems.
In some distance, you may benefit from ongoing dental care. Gingivitis and other gum health issues usually clear up after a thorough professional cleaning, but you must also implement good oral hygiene habits into your daily routine at home. Your dentist can help you plan an effective at-home dental care program and a schedule of regular professional checkups and cleanings.
If you stay consistent with your oral hygiene at home, you should see your gums return to a healthy pink color within days or weeks. Some good habits to keep in mind are regular flossing, brushing, and the use of mouthwash. Remember to use soft-bristle brushes and ensure that your toothpaste includes fluoride. Ask your dentist about any other hygiene habits you should have that are specific to your dental needs.
There is an important conversation for you to have with your dentist during your routine visits. It's a good idea to be prepared for this talk so that you know what to consider as well as what questions you may have for him or her.
Your dentist will ask you questions, such as:
There are also some questions that you should be asking your general dentist:
It's important to have good communication with your dentist so that you are both on the same page regarding your oral health and treatment plans. Be prepared to discuss your oral health in-depth and provide as much feedback as possible. Doing so will ensure that you get the best treatment possible and that your teeth are kept healthy well into the future.
These are the thing your general dentist can do to help you manage gum health issues. It's important that you visit your dentist twice per year, and that you also let them know about any changes in your oral health in-between visits. Be sure to ask your dentist any questions you may have, such as the ones listed above. This will go a long way in promoting high-quality oral hygiene practices.
Request an appointment here: https://www.drelloway.com or call Randal S. Elloway DDS, Inc at (530) 527-6777 for an appointment in our Red Bluff office.
Check out what others are saying about our dental services on Yelp: General Dentist in Red Bluff, CA.
Traditional dental X-rays, which have been around for over 100 years, have played an important role in general dentistry. However, digital alternatives are becoming a popular choice among dentists. Digital X-rays are a more recent innovation; they were first developed in the 1980s, but their widespread implementation did not begin until the 1990s. Today, many…
Digital X-rays are effective techniques for creating the most suitable diagnosis and treatment for various gum and tooth problems. Dentists want to make patients comfortable and secure. That is why they prefer to use state-of-the-art technology during a dental exam. If you want to know how digital X-rays can help during your dental checkup, here…
Although many individuals associate visits to the dentist with discomfort and uncertainty, advancements in digital dentistry have taken considerable strides toward improving patient comfort, treatment time, and data accuracy. So, what is digital dentistry? In short, this growing branch of the dental industry involves any digital or computer-based technology that dentists can use to examine, diagnose,…
Toothaches tend to occur at the worst possible times. The pain can make it impossible to focus on important tasks, and it can even lead to a few sleepless nights. Many people describe toothaches as the worst type of pain that they have ever experienced.Toothaches are the body’s way of saying that there is something…
Wisdom teeth extraction involves removing one or more of the teeth of the third set of molars. This can be performed before the tooth erupts, after the tooth has grown in, or if the tooth becomes impacted, i.e., it has only partially erupted from the gums. Extraction may be recommended for a variety of reasons.If…
Dental crowns are often costly and require that a dentist remove a significant amount of the tooth's structure to place them. Read on to learn about dental crown alternatives. Other treatment alternatives are sometimes available that are either less expensive or significantly less invasive. Dental crowns are frequently used to restore severely damaged teeth.The following…