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Top 5 Reasons To Go to the Dentist Regularly

Female Dentist | Walbridge Dental

Did you know that the average person should visit the dentist every six months for a professional check-up and cleaning? At Walbridge Dental, we want each and every one of our patients to have a healthy, beautiful smile, and the best way to achieve this is by practicing excellent oral hygiene. However, even if you take great care of your teeth at home, nothing compares to a professional cleaning at the dentist. Here’s a look at some of the top reasons why you should go to the dentist at least twice a year.

Tartar Build-Up

When bacteria accumulate in the mouth, tartar can form and eventually cause irreversible bone loss. Tartar is exceptionally tough, and sticks on your teeth until a dentist removes it. The longer it stays, the more severely it affects your dental health.

Toothbrushes aren’t designed to remove tartar, so no matter how hard you scrub (which you shouldn’t scrub too hard), the tartar will continue to build up. Eventually, you’ll start to notice the serious effects from tartar build up and you won’t be able to do much about it.

Fortunately, dentists have specialized tools that let them remove tartar from your teeth. It’s relatively easy, and is typically part of a normal dentist checkup. The better your oral health, the less they have to do. So visiting your dentist regularly makes it quick and easy to keep tartar off your teeth, or remove the small bits that do manage to form.

Catch Cavities Early

Cavities are the result of unchecked decay on your teeth. As bacteria are left to feed and grow, they leave behind acidic waste that damages the enamel and eventually wears into the tooth itself. The worse your oral care, the quicker cavities will begin to form. More importantly, the severity of cavities increases exponentiality as they’re left to grow.

Cavities aren’t something you’ll identify on your own right away. The early part of developing cavities won’t cause notable side effects. That means even if you’re trying to stay vigilant, your dental health will begin to decline well before you notice a sign, like pain.

Your dentist can detect tooth decay before you see or feel any signs of a cavity. When the problem is caught early, you may be able to avoid getting a filling. At the very least, the dentist will be able to keep more of your natural tooth during the restoration process. Check out this chart that describes the relationship between dental visit frequency and total tooth loss.

Detect Serious Oral Health Problems

Getting a close look at dental health isn’t easy. Even trained and experienced dentists need a variety of tools from handheld mirrors, magnifiers, and even x-rays to see what’s really going on.

People who don’t visit the dentist often will start to develop issues that are practically invisible to themselves. Like anything, the longer they’re left untreated, the more damage they can cause.

Dentists are trained to detect problems such as gum disease, oral cancer, and other diseases that could pose serious health problems down the road. The end results could be as serious as major tooth loss or even death.

 

It’s critical to catch these issues early-on before they progress into something worse. The only way to get these issues identified and diagnosed early is through regular dentist visits.

Make Your Smile Shine

The importance of a first impression can’t be overlooked – and most people admit they can notice bad dental care pretty quickly. A dim, yellow smile can really impact your social life. Simply having more confidence makes having a good set of healthy teeth worth the effort!

There’s only so much you can do at home. While some people can go their whole lives getting by with just a consistent, healthy toothcare routine, not everyone can. Some people are more prone to cavities, whether it be their saliva production or positioning of their teeth.

Getting the most out of your smile is a lot easier with the help of a trained professional. A professional cleaning and polishing will not only make your mouth feel squeaky clean, but it will also make your smile sparkle!

Old Age

If you’re 60+ years old, you should make it a priority to visit the dentist twice a year, if not more! As people age, they begin to produce less and less saliva (dry mouth), which can harbor higher-than-normal levels of bacteria.

If you have excellent oral hygiene, you may be able to get away with seeing the dentist once a year. However, if you regularly consume a lot of sugar or are at a higher risk for tooth decay, you may need to go to the dentist more often that twice a year. At your next appointment, talk with Dr. Matt and Dr. Jody about how often you should get a professional cleaning.

Contact Walbridge Dental

X-rays are an important part of keeping your smile healthy! From routine cleaning and exams to advanced restorative treatments to oral cancer detection, the professionals at Walbridge Dental provide complete family dental care to families in the Millbury community. Contact us online to set up an appointment now or call us at 419-836-1033.

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