Importance of Dental Cleanings

Herrick Dental | 02/27/13

Regular dental cleaning is an important part of having good oral hygiene, everyone knows that. This includes cleaning your teeth at home and visiting us for professional cleanings. Daily brushing paired with routine visits to our Columbus, Ohio dentist office twice a year are a combination that will help keep your teeth healthy for a long time. Here’s why:

Fighting Plaque
Plaque is one of the biggest threats to healthy teeth and gums. However, plaque can be kept under control by brushing your teeth after every meal, or twice a day at a minimum. While regular brushing does help to remove plaque, it is impossible to get all of it with a regular toothbrush. Electric toothbrushes are good, but nothing beats a professional cleaning. At Herrick Dental, we have special tools designed to help scrape off plaque that has hardened against the tooth enamel. This hardened plaque turns into mineral deposits known as tartar. Regular brushing can help keep tartar under control but we recommend a professional dental cleaning every six months to completely prevent it. This gives us a chance to remove tartar from areas that are hard to reach with a manual brush.

Floss For Hard To Reach Areas
Flossing every day helps to dislodge food particles that are stuck between teeth. These food particles need to be removed because if they stay on the teeth for too long, your teeth will begin to decay, resulting in cavities. Flossing also helps to remove plaque and tartar buildup from hard to reach areas around corners and between teeth. This will also help expedite your regular cleanings here at our dental office in Columbus.

Keep Gingivitis At Bay
Gingivitis is a gum disease caused by inflammation of the gums. Left untreated, gingivitis can progress deeper into the gums and turn into periodontal disease. Gingivitis can be prevented with regular brushing and flossing. Hydrogen peroxide has also been proven to help treat gingivitis when used as a mouthwash and swished between teeth. During your cleaning, we will check to make sure you don’t have gingivitis or any other diseases.

Some may think that it is a hassle to give so much attention to your teeth and gums. However, good oral health is directly related to your overall health. Taking good care of your teeth can prevent a number of undesirable oral procedures in the future.

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