Best Ways to Prevent Cavities
Who does not love a good smile? Seeing a person light up and show those pearly whites in a moment of happiness is nothing short of terrific. Still, some smiles do not contain those aforementioned “pearly whites” due to frequent oral health issues, such as cavities. But how does one protect themselves from damaging their teeth as time rolls on? Below are a few of the best ways to prevent oneself from having to deal with cavities:
Preventative Dentistry
In order to maintain good oral health, it is extremely important to practice preventative dentistry. What does that look like? Well, preventative dentistry is defined as “dental care that maintains good oral health. It’s a combination of regular dental check-ups along with developing good habits like brushing and flossing”. So, with that being the case, preventative dentistry can be done at home through adequate brushing, consistent flossing, and even rinsing out one’s mouth water or mouthwash.
Regularly See The Dentist
As stated above, regularly seeing the dentist is a part of preventative dentistry. At the same time, it should sit in its very own category because of the amount of services dentists can provide. These services include teeth whitening, general teeth cleaning, root canals, extractions, and more. When one combines all of these practices (when necessary), it becomes easy to understand why regularly seeing the dentist has such a big impact on preventing cavities.
Getting Enough Fluoride
Another service that most dentists provide is fluoride treatment. Fluoride, a naturally occurring mineral in many foods and water, may in fact be the number one defender of cavities. Why? Fluoride works to stop tooth decay in its early stages by remineralizing the tooth, which strengthens it. Even the ability of plaque bacteria to produce acid is decreased by this cavity-preventing mineral. So in a way, fluoride is a barrier that bacteria will have to fight through in order to finish its goal of creating a cavity. With that being said, everyone should make sure they have enough fluoride in their diet. It is essential to have that shield of fluoride to protect one’s teeth from cavities and any other potential damage.
Avoid Certain Foods
As previously mentioned, fluoride comes in a different number of foods and drinks. Still, that does not make every single food or drink healthy and a preventer of cavities. For example, there are certain foods that cling to teeth for long periods of time. Items containing a lot of sugar like candy, soda, ice cream, cereal, et cetera, are the most well-known offenders of tooth decay. With that being said, it is important to maintain a diverse diet for good oral health. In general, having a diverse diet is good for your overall health, but when it comes to teeth, avoiding eating ice cream every day while munching on foods that are easily washed away by saliva will do wonders in preventing cavities.