Brushing your teeth is extremely important for your dental health and your overall health.

Why should I spend time on a healthy dental regime:

• Keeps your teeth and gums fresh and clean
• Reduces the build up of plaque/tartar/calculus
• Lowers the chance of gum/periodontal disease
• Un-healthy teeth will fall out and un-healthy gums will recede
• Missing teeth will cause the surrounding bone to shrink (a bone graft may be required)
• Reduces the chance of other health complications – Gum disease has been linked to heart problems!

Not brushing your teeth can lead to very unpleasant conditions, that will require a considerable amount of dental treatment (seeing a periodontist specialist, or in the worst case scenario, dental implants will be needed).

An Effective dental hygiene regime:

• Brush twice a day
• Two minutes minimum for each brush
• Floss every day (or every couple of days)
• Don’t brush/floss too hard (this can cause your gums to bleed)
• If possible, brush after every meal to stop the build up of food particles – which eventually turns into plaque

It is recommended to visit a dental hygienist twice a year for a professional clean and check – Calculus (a hard substance formed from plaque/tartar) will be impossible to remove without professional dental tools

What if brushing your teeth doesn’t fit into my lifestyle?

One of the main causes for people not spending enough time on their daily dental hygiene, is because it can be seen as a time consuming process and they really don’t have the time in the morning or evening.

Your dental health and overall health are extremely important for your overall well being and can effect your social/work life. The negative effects that can be caused by not making time in the first place, will be far worse and can cause a lot of discomfort and pain, and time/money will be needed to rectify them.

How to fit a healthy dental hygiene regime into your lifestyle

• If the mornings are always a rush – set your alarm to an earlier time to allow yourself to wake up, wash, eat breakfast and brush your teeth effectively (let your natural body clock get used to a calm morning regime – which will set you up for a good day)
• Plan your evening – Set a time that you want/need to go to bed and ten minutes before brush your teeth and get yourself ready for bed – Going to bed in a rush or when your tired will mean you are less likely to brush your teeth
• The key point in any situation is to plan your time effectively and allow your self enough time to complete your daily tasks – not rushing around will lower your stress levels and this will be reflected in your social and work life
• Brushing after every meal will not be possible for everyone to achieve – but a solution could be to purchase a travel tooth brush and to have a small travel dental kit to take to work for a lunch time brush (this will be the hardest for most people to achieve – The main thing is to brush at least twice a day!)