Oral Hygiene Instructions

Proper oral hygiene will leave you with a healthy mouth and teeth. Brushing and flossing are only two components of proper oral hygiene, but play the most significant role in keeping your mouth free from harmful organisms. While almost everyone can brush and floss very few people actually do a thorough job of removing plaque. Proper technique is not enough to ensure that you have reached all the surfaces of every tooth. In order to achieve a perfectly clean mouth you must have formed the right habits to use the proper technique in every area of your mouth. The best training aid for developing the habit of cleaning every surface of your mouth is a disclosing agent.

Give Plaque The Brush

Choose a soft or extra soft nylon bristles, the tips of the bristles should be smooth and rounded. We will be happy to recommend a specific brush that best meets your dental needs. Here’s what to do:

  1. Place the head of the toothbrush next to your teeth, with the bristle tips at a 45-degree angle next to the gumline.
  2. Move the brush back and forth in a small circular scrubbing motion.
  3. Brush the out surfaces of all teeth, upper and lower. Make sure you keep the bristles angled against your gumline.
  4. Now brush the inside tooth surfaces, using the same brush strokes.
  5. To reach the inside surfaces of your front teeth, tilt your brush vertically and use gentle, up-and-down strokes with the head of the brush.
  6. Scrub the chewing surfaces of all back teeth.

 

Daily Flossing Removes Plaque And Food Particles

Plaque is the number one cause of tooth decay, gum disease and bad breath. Here’s how you can remove plaque with dental floss:

  1. Use a piece of dental floss approximately 18″ long. Wind each end of the floss around your middle fingers.
  2. Holding the floss tightly between your thumbs and forefingers, leave about an inch of floss. Using a gentle, back and forth motion to guide the floss in between your teeth. Avoid snapping the floss, as this may causse unnecessary damage to the gums.
  3. When the floss is at the gumline, curve it into an arc around each tooth until there is mild resistance.
  4. Holding the floss in the arc design, gently slide it up the side of the tooth, moving the floss away from the gum.
  5. Repeat this procedure on both sides of each tooth.