Frequent brushing =Good oral health?

Maintaining good oral hygiene is one of the most important things you can do for your teeth and gums. Good oral health is important to your overall well-being. Healthy teeth not only enable you to look and feel good, they make it possible to eat and speak properly.

                                                 

Bacteria can live in your mouth in the form of plaque, causing cavities and gingivitis, which can lead to periodontal (gum) disease. In order to keep your mouth clean, you must practice good oral hygiene every day.

Cavities in people with good oral hygiene are not as rare as one may think. 

According to the survey, people who brushing their teeth everyday are 99%, however 90% people age 40 and above have gum problem. Does it mean daily brushing promise good oral health?

Flossing for oral health

You can't reach the tight spaces between your teeth or under your gumline with a toothbrush. That's why daily flossing is important.

Flossing should be the number one adjunct to brushing. By not flossing you are not effectively cleaning up to 30 percent of the tooth surface. Floss each day, once per day, morning or night.

 

Oops!! Why there is a big gap between the newly erupted upper front teeth of my kid?

This is only a transitional stage. Some dentists refer to this condition as the "ugly duckling stage". Under normal circumstances, as the jaw matures and grows and the canines erupt, the incisors will straighten up and the gap will be closed. Meanwhile, no braces are needed.

Does my child need braces?

If the gap still present after the full eruption of lateral incisors and canine, the underlying reason of it must rule out.

There may be a supernumerary in between the central incisors or the frenum may thick and long attaching too far down in between the central incisors. 

supernumerary teeth

high frenum attachment

Last but not least, the lateral incisor is abnormally small in size.

 

abnormal small lateral incisor

 

Existing gap can be closed through orthodontic treatment after the underlying cause is removed.