Hopefully, you already carefully brush and floss your teeth at least twice a day (once before bedtime, preferably). If so, then you’re well on your way to achieving an excellent oral hygiene routine. However, there’s more to a clean and healthy smile than just a toothbrush and floss. Your Sheridan dentists explain why taking care of your eating habits is equally important to your continued good oral hygiene.

Watch your eating habits

“Sugar causes cavities” has been repeated so often that it can almost be considered clichéd. Nevertheless, it’s true, and there’s more to the story. Other fermentable carbohydrates, as well as sugar, feed certain oral bacteria, which convert them into acid. Though bacteria-produced acid dissipates after a few minutes, it weakens your enamel while it remains in your mouth, depleting your teeth of essential minerals. The more often you eat or snack throughout the day, the more often your teeth are exposed to enamel-destroying acid and the more likely you are to develop tooth decay. Limit your snacking habits, and if you can’t brush your teeth after eating, try rinsing your mouth with water to neutralize acid and rinse out oral bacteria and food debris.

Speaking of nutrition…

What you don’t consume can be as harmful to good oral hygiene as what you do eat. Your teeth, gums, jawbone, and entire oral health require an adequate supply of nutrition to remain strong, healthy, and functional. For instance, calcium helps keep your jawbone strong enough to support your teeth. The mineral is also a building block of enamel, and adequate calcium helps keep teeth strong against bacterial acid attacks.

Learn More About Good Oral Hygiene from Your Sheridan Dentists

Even with diligent daily brushing and flossing, plaque cans still find places to hide where your toothbrush will likely miss it. To ensure the removal of harmful plaque and its more stubborn, calcified form, tartar, be sure to visit your dentist at least once every six months for a routine dental checkup and cleaning. To learn more about good oral hygiene, schedule a consultation with your Sheridan dentist by contacting Grinnell Street Dental at (307) 672-7567. Located in the 82801 are, we welcome patients from Sheridan, WY and all surrounding communities.