You may not be surprised to learn that your teeth are protected by the strongest substance your body produces. The enamel that protects them, which is made up almost entirely of highly resilient mineral strands, can typically withstand some of the most intense pressure that your bite has to offer. However, your teeth only remain strong and healthy when you keep them safe from things that could harm them, make them weak, and/or lead to them developing an infection (also known as decay).
Keeping them safe from oral bacteria
The most common threat you have to keep your teeth safe from is the impact of oral bacteria accumulating excessively on your teeth and gums. At any given time, you have hundreds of kinds of bacteria living in your mouth, and many of them can cause specific types of harm to your oral health when they’re allowed to grow in numbers. This takes the form of dental plaque accumulating on your teeth surfaces and along your gum line, and protecting your teeth from it means consistently cleaning this plaque buildup off of them. Because plaque develops constantly, keeping your teeth safe from it requires brushing your teeth at least twice and flossing between them at least once, every single day.
Protecting them from each other
Even when your teeth are clean and safe from oral bacteria, there are other things that could threaten their health and integrity if you aren’t cautious. One of these things is the persistent habit of grinding your teeth together, which in severe instances, may be attributed to a condition known as bruxism. In less severe cases, you can take steps to stop grinding your teeth whenever you notice yourself doing it, and thereby stop them from wearing each other down or causing significant damage to each other.
Taking care of existing restorations
If you’ve had a previous dental issue that required you to receive a tooth restoration, such as a filling or a dental crown, then protecting your smile will require keeping the restoration safe, as well as your healthy teeth. The point of a dental restoration isn’t just to resolve an existing problem, like a cavity or damage to your tooth, but also to protect and preserve what remains of the tooth’s healthy, natural structure. If the restoration fails, or if you don’t care for it properly as well as the rest of your teeth, then the tooth could be at a greater risk of sustaining further damage or more serious infection.
Learn how to keep all of your teeth safe
Keeping your teeth safe from the things that could endanger them can take more than just brushing and flossing them every day. To learn more, schedule an appointment with us by calling Dreem Dentistry in Leawood, KS, today at 913-681-5500.
