Everyone wants a beautiful smile. It gives you more confidence and makes it easier to talk to people. But does the yellow colour of your teeth make you less excited? There are a lot of germs in our mouths, which may not be a big surprise. Dental plaque is a sticky film that forms on the teeth when these bacteria mix with protein and other waste products from food. When plaque isn’t taken care of in a timely manner, it gets hard and thick and turns into tartar. Tartar can damage teeth and cause other dental problems.
While plaque can be treated at home, only a professional dentist can remove tartar. In the long run, you might regret not going to that dentist appointment.
What Causes Dental Plaque?
Plaque is created when oral bacteria and foods high in sugar or starch, such as milk, juice, soft drinks, bread, pasta, and fruit, come into contact. These microorganisms release acids that dissolve the carbohydrates in food and beverages. If you don’t brush your teeth right after eating or drinking, bacteria, acids, and carbs can combine to make a sticky, colourless film called plaque.
Who Might Get Dental Plaque More Often?
Plaque builds up on everyone’s teeth, but you may get more plaque than usual if you:
- Eat or drink a lot of sugary things.
- Have a dry mouth because of things like Sjogren’s syndrome or medicines like antidepressants.
- Have a history of radiation to the head or neck.
- Smoke
How to Remove Plaque from Your Teeth?
In general, there are two ways to approach it:
- Brushing and flossing your teeth every day will help get rid of plaque that has already built up.
- Use an electric toothbrush to brush your teeth even better. By far, it is one of the best ways to get rid of plaque.
- You should carefully brush your teeth for at least two minutes twice a day and change the head of your electric toothbrush every three months.
- Loss without Floss: Brushing your teeth by itself is only half the job. Food that gets stuck between your teeth can only be appropriately removed by flossing since it can get to places where your toothbrush might not.
The other option is to use a special toothpaste that kills bacteria and keeps them from coming back.
- Use anti-plaque toothpaste recommended by your dentist to protect your teeth better from plaque.
- Use mouthwashes with medicine that helps stop plaque and tartar from forming.
How Can I Avoid Plaque?
You can cut down plaque by taking care of your teeth and gums. You should:
- Floss every day. Use dental floss or a water flosser to remove food and plaque stuck between your teeth by flossing once a day. Studies show that more plaque is removed when you floss before you brush your teeth.
- Brush your teeth twice a day: Use fluoride toothpaste and a toothbrush with soft bristles to brush your teeth for two minutes. At least twice a day, and best after each meal, you should brush your teeth.
- Chew sugar-free gum if you can’t brush your teeth right after eating or drinking. Choose one that has the seal of approval from the Canadian Dental Association (CDA).
- Choose nutritious foods: Eat and drink less sugary and starchy things. Instead, eat and snack on healthy foods like plain yogurt, cheese, raw vegetables or fruit, or nuts.
- See your dentist: Check your teeth at least twice a year.
- Brush your teeth: Rinse your mouth with an antiseptic mouthwash that you can buy over-the-counter or that your doctor may prescribe.
Plaque on teeth is a common problem with an easy fix. You should brush, floss, and go to the dentist every day. You can also kill the bacteria that cause dental plaque with antiseptic mouthwashes. In short, the less plaque will build up on your teeth, the better you take care of them.
Looking for the Best Teeth Whitening in Thornhill?
If you think you have a dental problem caused by too much plaque or tartar or want professional teeth cleaning session, call SkyRise Dental in Thornhill, Ontario, right away to make an appointment. The less damage the dental problem is likely to do, the sooner you take care of it.
You can make an appointment with us online or get in touch with us via our phone number.
