How to take care of your teeth and have a better dental hygiene

Here are some oral care habits you need to adopt to ensure overall wellbeing of your mouth, teeth and gums. Follow these steps and you will be able to prevent your mouth from becoming a breeding ground for 600 million bacteria and the health problems some of them bring along. This will also benefit you by giving you healthy white teeth.

• Brush your teeth twice daily using correct technique. So what’s the correct way of brushing your teeth? Place the bristles at 45 degrees along your gum line and brush using a vibrating back and forth movement for complete cleaning. For easier access to the back teeth, open your mouth only slightly. Go too wide and your cheeks get in the way. Don’t use forearm pressure.
• Use a brush or scraper to clean out your tongue. your breath will smell better.
• Follow up with an antimicrobial mouth rinse to eliminate any germs residing in areas where the brush couldn’t reach. But remember, some mouth washes contain alcohol, which dries the gums and reduces saliva flow which causes germs to multiply. So choose a non alcoholic mouth wash.
• Floss at least once a day to get rid of plaque buildup in the tight spaces between the teeth and in gum pockets that go to 3 to 4mm deep. (Toothbrush bristles can reach only as far as 1mm underneath the gum line.)
• Follow a healthy diet that features plenty of fibre. Crunchy fruit and veggies keep teeth clean. Sugary, sticky and starchy foods, on the other hand, cause acid buildup which eats into tooth enamel and causes cavities.
• Visit a dentist 6 months for a professional cleaning and to have your mouth examined so that you can nip any problems in the bud.