Practicing proper oral hygiene can help you to not only look great, but feel great. However, many people across the United States do not take the necessary time and effort to thoroughly clean their teeth. In fact, research shows that only approximately 50.5% of Americans state that they floss on a daily basis. This means that roughly half the country is letting plaque, food residue and bacteria fill in their gums.

A lack of proper oral hygiene can lead to moderate to severe complications such as a loss of tooth enamel, tooth decay, or infections that can all result in overall tooth loss. Roughly 3.75% of adults in the United States ages 20-64 actually have no remaining teeth, and 31.30% of adults older than 75 have none left. Here are some tips for making sure your teeth remain healthy and strong.

Tips and Tricks for Oral Hygiene Practices:

• Any local dentist will tell you that it is not enough to brush your teeth once a day; you should brush at least twice. While many individuals prefer to do this once in the morning and once at night, some people may prefer to do a second brushing in a work break or after dinner. Both methods are fine.
• It may seem annoying and time consuming, but flossing really is a key in keeping your gums and teeth healthy. When you floss, be sure to bring the floss all the way down to the gum line, otherwise you’ll miss the buildup of residual food and bacteria.
• After brushing and flossing, you want to be sure to rinse with some kind of listerine or fluoride to not only freshen your breath but to further eliminate bacteria residing in your mouth. It’s best to use fluoride before you got to sleep, as you aren’t supposed to eat right after using the rinse.

Permanent dentures, oral sedation dentistry, cavities; all these things can be avoided with the right kind of care for your teeth. Going to a cosmetic dentist to have to try to fix your teeth can be quite expensive; pay attention to your teeth and you can keep those pearly whites for good.

Looking for a cool springs dentist? Check out your local neighborhood and see what you can find. Ask friends and family if they have any good recommendations or use the Internet to search “cool springs dentist.” Look at different cool springs dentist websites and read reviews of practices to find one that seems to fit you and your financial situation the best.

Do you have any more tips for proper oral hygiene? Let us know in the comments below!