Do we know how to really take care of our mouth? These habits should be abolished and replaced with more effective and healthy ones
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himFrom an early age we were used to brushing our teeth, and maybe even to use mouthwash, but are we sure that this is enough to preserve the health of our mouth? Our oral cavity - made up of teeth, gums, tongue and palate - is a jumble of different tissues and organs, each with a specific function: everyone should be given the right attention.
There are habits, apparently harmless and that we often put into practice without even thinking about them or that we have adopted in the belief that our smile can benefit from them, which actually damage the mouth and can increase the risk of tooth decay, bad breath, gingivitis and other problems. Let's see which are the five that should be avoided absolutely.
Index
Use the toothpick
If we have something stuck in our teeth, we often use the toothpick to get rid of it thinking we are doing a good thing - but there is nothing more wrong. Using a pointed and rigid tool such as a toothpick can cause trauma to the gums and, in the long run, flatten the gingival papillae (i.e. the parts of the gum that fill the space between one tooth and another): this flattening will make the teeth more exposed the risk of infections.
Furthermore, the wood of which the toothpick is made is a very permeable material to water and, in contact with the very humid environment of our mouth, it ends up softening and breaking: in this case there is the risk that some splinters wood gets stuck in the gum without us even noticing - this could lead to infection or injury.
What can we use when something gets stuck between our teeth? Dentists recommend the use of dental floss. But beware: dental floss should not be used only in extreme cases - its use should be daily to avoid the risk of halitosis. Passed delicately between one tooth and another, in fact, it contributes to the removal of bacterial plaque and to make the mouth cleaner and healthier. It is therefore recommended to use it every day, after brushing your teeth in the evening.
Use the stiff bristle toothbrush
We make a big mistake if we buy a hard-bristled toothbrush thinking it works best for our oral hygiene. Like the toothpick, the hard bristles of the toothbrush also inflict traumatic scrubbing to the teeth and gums, which in the long run can inflame the gums and damage the tooth enamel. It is therefore better to use a toothbrush with medium-soft bristles and brush carefully but without applying excessive force.
Also pay attention to the time we dedicate to tooth brushing: we should calculate two minutes total, about thirty seconds for each dental half-arch. It is a very long time to which we can slowly get used to: for the first few times, we can use a clock or the stopwatch on our smartphone.
(Also Read: Toothbrush may be a repository for germs and bacteria, but with these tricks you keep it clean)
Don't clean your tongue
As we have said, the mouth is made up of different elements, and each of them needs proper cleaning. So, after brushing our teeth and gums we also pay attention to our tongue - particularly exposed to the presence of bacteria due to its rough surface full of tiny "cracks". The accumulation of bacteria on the tongue is responsible for most of the phenomena of halitosis.
But how do you clean your tongue properly? There are special objects called tongue scraper, which must be held firmly and passed several times along the entire length of the tongue starting from the innermost part to the tip. Alternatively, we can also use the same brush with which we brush our teeth - as long as this has soft bristles, so as not to inflame the taste buds on the tongue. A few seconds of attention are enough to have a healthy and clean tongue and, consequently, a fresher breath.
Teeth whitening with home methods
Homemade mixes based on lemon juice, baking soda, table salt or powdered milk are actually very harmful to the enamel of our teeth, because they tend to corrode and thin it irreparably. If you want to have whiter teeth, it is better not to follow viral tutorials on social networks, but to contact your dentist and proceed with professional whitening.
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