Spot on advice. Threw out the smokes coming up on six years ago. My Dentist noticed the improvement four years ago. He keeps asking, why do your teeth and gums keep improving?
Ewwwww!!!!
That said, I do think "every 6 mos" is unnecessary. Unless you have a specific or unusual dental problem, once a year is good.
From what I understand of recent studies, the flossing is far more important. Brushing is mainly to keep the gums healthy, as the teeth, other than in between, are pretty much self cleaning. Also, should brush before meals or more than an hour after so the acids from the foods have time to neutralize; right after eating the enamel on teeth is slightly softened by those acids, so if you brush right then you wear the teeth further.
Personally, I recommend investing in an electric toothbrush such as the Oral-B pro series (the ones that have ultrasound and 3d motion). Not only do they have a timer to help you get the right amount of brushing, but once I started using one, my dentist always commented on how healthy my mouth was. My brush also has a water-flosser which I use with diluted Listerine, which seems to help immensely.
Best investment ever is is sonicare toothbrush. Will keep you from dental work forever if used 2_3 times a day.
“An apple a day keeps the doctor away - and the dentist at bay”
Apples and strawberries leave your teeth squeaky clean...cheese can aid also
http://www.livestrong.com/article/123675-foods-clean-teeth/
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Do_apples_clean_teeth
Swordmaker posted an interesting article on dental health a while back: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2769347/posts
I use baking soda with small amount of 3% hydrogen peroxide and then toothpaste a couple times per week. Now I see that Colgate OPTIC White toothpaste contains hydrogen peroxide. Costco sells it. It’s supposed to kill bacteria by eliminating oxygen.
For the cost of a couple of root canals you can instead go the store bought route. Go to a Denture Clinic. They are cheaper on the pulling bill also. It's a wise long term cost savings measure especially for anyone taking blood pressure medications.
Seriously a good upper & lower set of store boughts goes at about $300-$400 tops and no one is going to even know it if they do them right.
My dentist has said that flossing BEFORE brushing is most effective.
When you floss you clean out the food and bacteria from between the teeth.
It makes more sense to floss out the food and bacteria and then brush and rinse it away, than to brush and then floss the food and bacteria into your mouth and leave it there.
I’d add: floss before brushing. Allow the tooth brush to carry away the gunk disloged by flossing.
Avoid popcorn and hard candy. Or at least chew them VERY gingerly. You can break a tooth or filling very easily.
When I began to floss before brushing, which was just once at night before bed (in the shower, so I could make plenty of mess without worrying about it) I stopped getting cavities of any kind. I’ve had some old crowns get loose and teeth chip, but that’s it.
I chewed leaf tobacco for thirty years and never had a problem with my teeth. I’ve been off it for three years now and my teeth aren’t doing as well. Go figure.
It’s cheaper to drive to Tijuana for dental care than to get it locally in San Jose CA.
I just had to have a bridge replaced. It was 15 years old. (Long life for a bridge). My portion with insurance was about $600 then. It was $1500 this year with same coverage.
Floss. It’ll take care of 99% of your dental bills by getting all that food stuff, germs and junk from in between your teeth and under your gums.
Think I’ll go floss right now. I feel good afterward....
I like my Water Pik; have a free standing one and it’s pretty good. Also, what about using baking soda to brush and hydrogen peroxide to rinse? I do that; always rinse the hydrogen peroxide out in water though as it’s pretty strong.