DENTAL HYGIENE
How does good oral hygiene help us?
- For a patient without periodontal disease: it helps maintain dental health.
- For a patient with periodontal disease: it helps bring about an optimal cure following treatment.
- For a patient with periodontal disease: it helps prevent the disease from coming back.
General Advice:
- 1. Avoid eating too many refined sugars (sweets, etc.).
- 2. Avoid harmful habits (smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc.).
- 3. Avoid eating foods that are very hot or very cold.
- 4. Try to brush your teeth after every meal.
- 5. SEE YOUR DENTIST AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR.
What is plaque?
Plaque is a whitish film that accumulates on the teeth and the mouth’s soft tissues. Bacterial colonies live in plaque and are responsible for teeth and gum diseases (cavities and periodontal disease). Plaque is easily eliminated with good oral hygiene techniques
Characteristics of a good toothbrush:
- Soft bristles with polished and rounded tips.
- Small head.
- Firm anatomical handle.
- The brush should be replaced at least every three months.
How should teeth be brushed?
It is very important to follow an orderly, routine technique so as not to forget any areas.
- 1º. Hold the toothbrush as if you were going to write with it and place the head along the teeth in horizontal position, at a 458 angle to the vertical axis of the teeth and over the gums, where the teeth meet the gums (Image 1).
- 2º. Start with the inner section of the upper teeth (the palate). Once the toothbrush is in place, begin a soft vibratory movement (as if you were trembling) and continue for 4-6 seconds. The effect will be Ïto sweepÓ the teeth gently, in a downwards movement (Image 2).
- 3º. Repeat the operation on all teeth and surfaces (inner and outer sections) both above and below (when brushing the lower teeth the ÏsweepingÓ movements will be in an upwards direction) (Image 3).
- 4º. In the lingual areas of the incisors we will place the brush vertically and carry out the same movements. (Image 4).
- 5º. Occlusal areas (chewing surfaces) will be brushed using circular movements(Image 5 and 6).
- 6º. To clean the tongue we "sweep" it from the back towards the front (Image 7).
- 7º. We can also use a TONGUE
CLEANER, "scraping" the tongue from the back
towards the front.
To finish, we will rinse with plenty of water (Image 8).
How to use dental floss?
Using dental floss is the only effective method for
eliminating plaque from the surfaces between the teeth.
The following instructions will help, but the correct use
of dental floss requires time and practice.
Start by cutting a piece of dental floss that is about 45 cm
long. Roll most of the floss around
the middle finger of one hand (the right if you are
right-handed), and the rest of it around the same finger of the
other hand.
To clean the upper teeth, hold the floss between the thumb of one hand and the index finger of the other, leaving a little more than 1 cm. (the less space, the better control you will have) of floss between the two hands. Insert the floss between the teeth by using a sawing movement. Do not force the floss to enter. Take it all the way to where the teeth meet the gum.
Curve it in a "C" shape against one tooth, sliding it into the space between the gum and the tooth until you feel resistance. The floss should penetrate about 3 mm under the gum. Using both hands, move the floss up and down against one tooth and then do the same against the adjacent tooth.
Once the floss in the space has been used, roll it around the finger with less floss, unrolling from the other finger to obtain a new portion. Repeat this technique on all surfaces of the upper teeth.
To clean between the lower teeth, it is easier to guide the floss with the index fingers of both hands..
Do not forget the back surface of the last tooth on both sides, both above and below.
Last of all, rinse with plenty of water to eliminate the plaque and the loosened food particles.
How to use interproximal brushes
In people with larger spaces between their teeth, an
interproximal brush can be used instead of dental floss.
These brushes come in many shapes and sizes and we must
find the one that best adapts to our teeth..
The interproximal brush is used by moving it back and forth
through the space between the teeth, rubbing against the lateral
surfaces of the teeth. It is very
important that the brush always reach the gum, so that it can
eliminate the plaque. If the
interproximal brush does not fit comfortably, do not force it.
It may be that the space is not wide enough and a smaller
sized brush, or dental floss, should be used..
