Why Are Regular Dental Checkups Essential for Your Oral Health?
Regular dental checkups in Providence, RI are essential to help you maintain healthy and clean teeth, besides strengthening them by receiving fluoride treatments. The checkups also help identify life-threatening conditions that might affect you without your knowledge.
The American Dental Association recommends six-monthly dental checkups for everyone, including children and the elderly. However, if you need more frequent exams, you can discuss your needs with your dentist, depending on the conditions in your mouth. However, you must not avoid or delay a regular dental checkup because it can leave infections undetected in your mouth to need intensive treatments later.
The Importance of Professional Teeth Cleaning
Your mouth has millions of bacteria living harmoniously with each other but can occasionally assume harmful proportions when you have sugary and carbohydrate-rich foods because they constantly form dental plaque on your teeth. Dental plaque is comfortably removable by brushing and flossing. Unfortunately, specks of plaque can remain between your teeth to harden into tartar within 48 hours. Hardened tartar is nonremovable by brushing and flossing, making it essential to see a professional for removal.
When you visit your dentist for an oral checkup, you also receive a professional cleaning when the hygienist at the practice cleans your teeth using dental instruments like tiny mirrors and dental scalers to eliminate hardened tartar buildup. If left without removal on your teeth, hardened tartar results in gum disease needing more frequent dental cleanings than usual, besides other expensive treatments from dentists. Gum disease weakens your jawbone to cause tooth loss. It even affects other parts of your body when the bacteria enter your bloodstream, resulting in cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, et cetera.
Professional teeth cleaning also helps by giving you a brighter smile because the hygienist polishes your teeth using an electric toothbrush with gritty toothpaste before providing you with a fluoride treatment to strengthen tooth enamel to battle cavities. When you don’t receive professional cleanings twice yearly, the buildup of hardened tartar continues uninhibited, making you a victim of a condition that remains with you for life unless treated in the initial stages. Therefore professional cleanings gain importance because they help prevent problems with your overall health besides keeping your mouth and dental health optimal.
Benefits of Routine Dental Visits for Overall Well-Being
The benefits of routine dental checkups in Providence, RI, are numerous. When you call the dentist for an appointment, you can expect them to take x-rays of your teeth to detect problems between them before they are visible. The dentist also measures your gums using special tools, taking the depth between your teeth and gums. Finally, dentists check for diseased areas in your gums that might aggravate into periodontal disease.
A visual face and head inspection follow the inspection of your teeth and gums. The dentist checks your mouth, head, neck, and face for signs of early-stage oral cancer. If they notice red-and-white patches in your mouth, they suggest revisiting them in a couple of weeks to ascertain whether the abnormal patches have disappeared or expanded. An oral cancer checkup does not mean you have this devastating condition. However, if you are at high risk of oral cancer with practices like smoking, excessive sunlight exposure, a history of oral cancer in the family, or HIV/AIDS, risks increase manifold making it essential to receive an oral cancer checkup once every three years as an adult. However, if you visit the province dentist for routine dental exams and cleanings, you benefit from a free oral cancer screening twice a year without realizing it. Dentists complete oral cancer screenings in under five minutes during your appointment.
Caring for Your Teeth Between Dental Visits
Dental plaque constantly forms on your teeth and is removable by brushing and flossing. However, if you incorporate six-monthly dental checkups, the dentist can help to avoid plaque and tartar buildup by eliminating them from your teeth and beneath the gum line. However, between dental checkups by the dentist in Providence, RI, you must brush your teeth twice daily using fluoride toothpaste to protect your tooth enamel and help remove plaque to prevent tartar from hardening. Flossing your teeth is also essential to clean between them. In addition, you can use an antibacterial mouthwash to freshen your breath and kill harmful bacteria present on your teeth to enjoy optimal dental health.
If you have missed or delayed regular dental checkups, kindly visit Drs Rubinstein & Ducoff for an evaluation today to ensure your mouth is free from complications. In addition, the visit will help put your mind at ease, knowing your dental health is in optimal shape.