When you are able to optimize your daily oral hygiene routine, you are able to protect your smile from future damage as well as aesthetic problems. All it takes is a couple of minutes to assess your current oral hygiene efforts. Take a look at your brushing routine, and make some of these tweaks if necessary!
Tweaks in technique from our Santa Monica dentist:
- Apply only gentle pressure to your teeth and gums as you brush
- To clean the fronts and backs of your teeth, move your toothbrush in small circular motions; essentially “buffing” the plaque from the tooth surface
- Clean the tops of your molars using a back-and-forth motion, and small flicking motions to dislodge plaque
- Brush your smile for about two minutes, both morning and night. Many of our patients find that they have been brushing smiles for half of this time, if not less!
Improve your tools:
- When you are shopping for a toothbrush, ensure that the size of the brush head is appropriately sized for your mouth
- Consider bristle firmness—the general rule of thumb is that you want to use the softest bristles possible (your dentist can make a more personalized recommendation on bristle strength once they have assessed your smile)
- Get back into the habit of flossing! It can be difficult to reach all of the plaque that is stuck between your teeth—that’s why flossing is critical.
One of the great things about these oral hygiene tips is that they can all be implemented right away. These are some quick, easy, and effective steps that you can take today to improve your smile for tomorrow.
As always, our Santa Monica dentists are here to answer additional questions, and to help you schedule a personal consultation. You can always contact our team by giving our office a call or by using the Contact Us page on our site to submit a question.