By Lauren • 15 Comments
Oral care is an essential ingredient in your overall menu for good health. Here are the key points to keeping your teeth clean and your mouth kissable.
What you eat will have an impact on your teeth. If you drink a lot of black tea or red wine, you should forget about pearly white teeth. Similarly, for gravies, colas, and dark juices. If what you're eating is dark, it's probably going to stain your teeth. Avoid eating this stuff, and if you really have to, brush your teeth immediately after eating it.
Quick brushing is not enough; you have to brush your teeth for at least a couple of minutes to get rid of all the bacteria-packed plaque. You can use a watch to ensure you have brushed your teeth for a couple of minutes or simply hum your favorite tune that lasts about a couple of minutes.
Go check your old brush. Does it feel as if you've used it to clean the car? You need to slow down because you're brushing too hard. You need to hold it like a pencil and ensure that it glides over your gums at a 45-degree angle. Instead of sticking to a back-and-forth motion, you should consider moving it in a circular motion for better effects.
Research has shown that flavonoids and some other ingredients found in tea may help prevent bacteria from thriving in your mouth. Drinking a cup of tea daily may also limit the production of a type of sugar that causes cavities.
Brushing won't help if your brush doesn't eliminate plaque and harmful bacteria. It is therefore important to pick the right brush and change it 3-4 times a year – it's even better to buy a new one every couple of months.
Brushing is great, but you also need to floss. Flossing removes stubborn bits of debris that the thicker bristles of your toothbrush may not be able to grab. Mouthwash works to wash away all the detritus from brushing and flossing, is antiseptic and antibacterial and also freshens your breath. Be sure to select an alcohol-free mouthwash because alcohol can dry out the tissues and give bacteria a more feasible environment to thrive.
You brush your teeth regularly. You floss. You use a good mouthwash. Still, you cannot seem to point out why your breath doesn't feel that fresh. For kissing-perfect breath, you should never forget to clean your tongue. Get a tongue scraper and use it every morning to great rid of tongue plaque. This will help you get rid of bad breath.
One of the best tips to keep your teeth clean is to cut back on sugar. You always have bacteria in your mouth, and they need sugar to thrive and cause oral plaque. This plaque may even lead to tooth decay, bleeding gums, and cavities. The acid in refined sugars may also dissolve tooth enamel. Avoid candies, cookies, and sodas, and limit starchy foods such as cereals and breads.
Eating fresh fruits is a great way to clean your teeth, but you may also consider eating specific food as the final food you eat in your meal. Many concluding foods will help in this regard. Aged cheeses are great if consumed at the end of your meal. Similarly, chewing sugarless gum may also help because it stimulates the flow of saliva, which not only decreases acid but also eliminates food particles.
How good is your oral hygiene? Do you need to make any changes?