As a responsible adult, you probably know how important it is to brush your teeth twice a day and floss daily.
Unfortunately, no matter how diligent you are in your day-to-day dental care, if you aren’t seeing the dentist regularly, you are setting yourself up for significant problems down the road.
Taking care of your teeth isn’t just an aesthetic issue. While keeping your smile bright is a part of what you can expect from a trip to the dentist, it can also literally save your life.
Here are some of the top reasons to seek out a dental cleaning near me:
Prevent Problems Before They Start
Maintaining good oral health is best achieved in partnership with your dentist. A dental cleaning can achieve results you just aren’t capable of on your own.
One of the primary reasons for this is the “pocket,” the space between your teeth and gums. The pocket is where bacteria and plaque get stuck, even if you brush and floss daily.
A dental cleaning removes the rest, thereby preventing gingivitis, the inflammation that can lead to periodontal disease (the loss of gum and bone).
Removing plaque is an essential part of the dental cleaning process. Plaque is the bacteria-containing film that builds up on your teeth.
Plaque can cause cavities and gingivitis, and if not removed regularly, it can turn into the much harder substance tartar, which can lead to tooth and gum loss.
The right dental office will take care to instruct you in proper oral hygiene and allow you to ask questions.
Detect Problems Early
Dental cleanings also function as a bi-annual oral health check-up. Before they become significant issues, they allow your dentist to catch any potential problems, such as cavities or receding gums. So, why not visit the general dentist in cookeville as a precautionary measure?
More minor issues need smaller (and cheaper) solutions.
To this end, your dentist will take annual x-rays. One benefit of seeing the dentist regularly is that it allows them to track any changes in your teeth and gums.
Additionally, your dentist will take the opportunity to screen for oral cancer. While oral cancer is very treatable in its early stages, it can be deadly if not discovered soon enough.
Oral health is closely connected with a body’s overall health. Specifically, research suggests that gum disease is linked to cardiovascular disease and stroke.
Good oral hygiene, including regular dental cleanings, can help lower your risk for these deadly health conditions.
Find a Dental Cleaning Near Me
As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If you have dental insurance, odds are you get twice-yearly cleanings for free.
That’s because insurance companies know they will only have to shell out more money in the future if they don’t cover this essential service.
And if you don’t have dental insurance, it’s even more critical that you invest in prevention to save yourself the pain and cost of future dental problems.
Sandra is a health blogger based in San Diego, California. She is passionate about living a healthy lifestyle. She loves being outdoors and exploring new places with her husband. She is a mom of two awesome kids and a dog named Luna!