There are a lot of demands on your time – that’s just the way the world works nowadays! Between work, family, and your social life it can be hard to squeeze in things like a visit to the dentist. At our Carmel office we completely understand, but we still want you to know how important dental care is!
When it comes to regular maintenance, whether it’s on your body, house, car, or anything else, lots of us take a reactive approach. Rather than spend time maintaining things we react once something has already gone wrong. The worst part? We know it’s only a matter of time before something goes wrong and a proactive approach can prevent problems from getting worse!
It’s no different when it comes to your dental care. Your mouth is a complicated part of your body and taking care of it requires more than what you can do on your own. So if you’ve ever asked if regular dental appointments are important the answer is definitely YES!
Why Are Regular Appointments Important?
Understanding the importance of regular dentist appointments goes hand-in-hand with understand the main cause of oral health issues: plaque. You probably know what plaque is even if you haven’t heard the word. Plaque is the sticky, filmy substance that builds up on your teeth throughout the day. It also shows up on your teeth and gums as a white substance, and it’s bad news for your oral health!
Plaque is full of bacteria of a variety of types. Depending on the location and density of the plaque in your mouth the types of bacteria can be different, some even thriving in oxygen-free environments! The bacteria that lives in plaque all have one thing in common, though: they absolutely love sugar.
When bacteria digest the sugar in your mouth they produce an acid that eats away at your enamel, eventually causing cavities. Bacteria can also get below the gumline and spread infection there too – left unchecked plaque can destroy your smile!
Now think about your mouth – there are probably a lot of spots that you have a hard time brushing. Even daily flossing might not clean every crevice, and that’s plaque’s chance to grow unchecked! That’s why regular appointments are so important – they help protect your teeth, find deposits of plaque that you have a hard time getting to, and protect your teeth with fluoride treatments!
Getting A Cleaning
While daily brushing and flossing do a great job of keeping your teeth clean there’s no substitute for the tools and training of the staff at Really Smile Dentistry! We work hard to keep your teeth healthy and cavity-free!
It’s generally recommended that you get your teeth examined and cleaned every six months. That is the optimal window for us to keep track of your oral health so that we can notice any small differences. Imagine if we caught that old cavity quickly – you might not have that filling or crown!
It’s also normal that your teeth will undergo some enamel loss between appointments – it’s almost unavoidable! Because your mouth is almost constantly dealing with the assault of plaque acids you’re bound to lose enamel, but that’s easy to repair with fluoride! Toothpaste and products for home are great ways to get a fluoride boost between appointments but the fluoride we use at our Carmel office is far stronger! Simply by getting a fluoride treatment at your next cleaning you’ll be saving yourself time, money, and potential pain later in life!
What If I Don’t Get A Cleaning?
Without regular care you’re taking your oral health into your own hands – same with a car that you never get an oil change for! Regular maintenance is an important part of any system, and your mouth is no different.
Long term effects of plaque buildup include:
- tooth decay
- gum disease
- tooth loss
- bite collapse
- the need for dentures
- painful, expensive restorative procedures
With that list of outcomes it’s up to you to decide whether you’d rather take control of your oral health with an exam and cleaning or if you’d rather take your chances. Our vote is to keep your teeth healthy and your smile beautiful: choose to be proactive!
Schedule a cleaning and exam at our Carmel dentist office today! Call us at 317-597-8748 or request an appointment using our online form. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Dr. David A. Smith explains his vision of life-changing dentistry for Really Smile Dental: