16 Common Dental Myths

People have created numerous wrong ideas about dental treatments and oral health care. Such wrong ideas impede you from either receiving advantageous dental treatments or engaging in oral health practices together, resulting in no such healthy mouth. Hence, it is of utmost importance to recognize that there are differences between dental myths and facts and to optimize the quality of oral health and overall well-being.

Sugar and its effect on dental health

Eating A Lot Of Sugar Can Be The Cause To Cavities

It is no secret that sugar impacts your teeth negatively, but how exactly? Truth be told, the ingestion of a lot of sugar does not precisely lead to tooth decay, how long the sugar remains in your mouth, however, is the actual matter.

Your teeth become more susceptible to cavities, due to the sugar introduced into the mouth which causes bacteria to generate acids that will little by little eat away the tooth enamel.

The minerals discoverable in the saliva, adding in to brushing and flossing your teeth, can aid in repairing the enamel worn down by the damaging bacteria, strengthening the teeth.

Sugar-Free Sodas Do Nothing For Your Teeth

A very wrong idea spread among people is that sugar-free sodas are fine for your teeth. Yet, even with no sugar, the soda’s acidity can become very harmful to the tooth enamel.

The average pH level of water sits at 7, the neutral position on the scale of bases and acids. Nevertheless, sugar-free sodas’ pH sits at around 2 or 3, which is uncommonly acidic to the teeth. As a point of reference, you should know that the pH level of battery acid sits at 1.

Patient with white healthy teeth.

White Teeth Means Healthy Teeth

Several people take action to brighten their smiles, making teeth whitening a very popular choice. Approximately 18 to 52% of people are unsatisfied with their teeth color. That being said, a pearly smile isn’t by definition healthy teeth hint.

The teeth’ color varies from one individual to another. So rather than basing health on the color of the teeth, dental practitioners look for signs such as zero cavities or fresh breath to establish overall oral health.

Braces Are Not For Older People

Seen as the best approach for many to get the smile they deserve, braces are oftentimes distorted to be something that only children and teens have to contend with as a part of aging. This isn’t true.

Progressively more adults are beginning to see the advantages of having braces. If as a child you have gotten braces or your teeth have started to shift with time, straight teeth can still be achievable at any age.

Solutions like Invisalign are also accessible to straighten your teeth without the use of braces.

Pregnant woman visiting the dentist.

Pregnant Mothers Should Avoid The Dentist

Numerous prospective mothers might have hesitation when it comes to going to their dentist while they are expecting. This couldn’t be any further from the truth.

As a matter of fact, it is advisable for soon-to-be mothers to keep their regular follow-up visits throughout their pregnancy because hormone levels rise while a woman is pregnant, and such hormone levels can lead to gums swelling or bleeding.

Toothaches Are No Reason To Worry Once They’ve Stopped

In the event that you are going through a toothache, but then feel the pain subside, you should still go and visit your dentist as promptly as possible. Cavities are often the reason for toothaches, as untreated cavities can reach a nerve inside the tooth, resulting in pain.

If the pain stops, it doesn’t mean the problem has disappeared, rather it means that the cavity has been lethal to the nerve inside the tooth.

Oral Health Has No Connection To Your Body

The mouth is the main entrance to a lot of bacteria, some of them beneficial, some harmless, but some quite damaging. Nevertheless, oral health can establish the well-being of the rest of the body, considering its role as an entry point.

By overlooking your teeth’s health, your body is becoming automatically vulnerable to a host of various diseases like pneumonia, cardiovascular diseases, and endocarditis. By setting appointments with your dentists regularly and maintaining a good oral care routine, you can immensely reduce the chances of other diseases entering the body.

Dental health for seniors.

The Health Of Your Teeth Degrades With Age

Though your oral health changes with time, it does not necessarily mean that it will worsen or that there is nothing you can do about it. By scheduling regular appointments with your dentist, and keeping a strict dental routine, you can have great oral health that will lead you straight into the senior years. The procedures you have to follow do vary and change from one individual to another, and with age, so make sure to set appointments routinely with your dentist to discover the best oral care routine for you.

Baby Teeth Are Of No Importance

Baby teeth cannot be underestimated. While needed for your child to speak correctly and chew at a very early age, baby teeth are also useful for the purpose of creating vacancies for adult teeth to come in.

The removal of a baby tooth prematurely will leave spaces for other teeth to move around, which can lead to problems like crookedness and overlapping. Overly-shifted teeth can make it difficult to keep an amazing oral health routine going into the future.

Bleaching Is Bad For Your Teeth

At the time of commencement of tooth whitening, people would consider bleaching damaging to their teeth. Taking into account the acidic nature of bleaching and the fact that it would dissolve the protective enamel, teeth can be left susceptible to any type of tooth decay and cavity. 

Be that as it may, this is not the case anymore. Dental practitioners nowadays use non-acidic and safe bleaching techniques to aid in whitening your teeth turning modern teeth whitening into efficacious and safe.

Proper teeth brushing techniques.

Brushing Your Teeth Really Hard Will Make Them Cleaner And Healthier

Logically for many, brushing your teeth really hard means keeping them healthy. However, this is in no way true- seeing as doing so will do more harm than good. Exceedingly sturdy brushing can impact the enamel that surrounds the teeth by wearing it down and leading to gum recession. Considering that the enamel is the hard outer layer that protects the teeth from cavities by covering them, no one would like it damaged. A common help would be opting for a soft-bristled toothbrush over one that is medium or firm.

There Is No Need For Flossing

Among the key components of oral health is flossing, undoubtedly. Daily flossing fights the plaque buildup in between the teeth, which can be passed over by brushing only. The reason why your gums are bleeding could be irregular flossing. When flossing consistently is neglected, bacteria and plaque can build up. Little by little, the gums can become very inflamed and once this starts to happen, they will easily bleed. This does not mean in any way that you should stop flossing, on the contrary, it means you should start flossing far more. As the flossing habit develops, the gum should stop bleeding.

Patient suffering from tooth ache.

You Only Have To Visit The Dentist If Something Is Bothering You

When waiting until you are feeling discomfort or pain to schedule an appointment with your dentist, then you might find yourself in bigger trouble than could’ve been alternatively avoided. As with any other disease or health problem, dental issues are easily treated or reversed when caught early in time. Conditions such as gum disease or cavities do not show any symptoms for a long while, so you won’t know precisely if there is something going wrong.

The start of the pain means the issue has worsened. You might then need a root canal or a tooth extraction for something that if caught at the right time could’ve been treated with less invasive and grievous measures.

Tooth Loss Is Hereditary

Not in accordance with the general practice that tooth loss is hereditary, tooth loss is actually quite preventable. Caused most commonly by cavities, tooth loss can be avoided with appropriate oral hygiene. Through daily flossing and brushing, preventative care, and regular dental visits, you can take pleasure in your pearly whites for a lifetime.

The Time Of The Day You Brush Your Teeth Does Not Matter

Dental associations around the world advise brushing your teeth twice a day for two minutes at a time, once in the morning after having your first meal and once before bedtime. In addition to the twice-a-day rule, timing or when to brush your teeth is important because your teeth are particularly susceptible to cavity-causing agents and gum disease when sleeping, considering that the antibacterial saliva production slows down during that time. 

Woman chewing gum.

Chewing A Piece Of Gum Is Just As Good As Brushing Your Teeth

Needless to say: chewing gum has its benefits for oral health. Nevertheless, it could never be a replacement for brushing your teeth. Sugar-free gum can assist in displacing bacteria in the mouth, freshening your breath, and increasing saliva production, but it is unable to remove the sticky plaque building up on the teeth. 

From routine dental follow-up visits to professional teeth whitening, dental implants, and dental crowns, our experienced team at Trio Dental Center can assist you in optimizing your oral health. Contact our office today to schedule a dental visit at +355685577278 or request an appointment online.

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