If you’ve been grinding away with your toothbrush every night since you were six, you probably feel like you’ve got the whole “dental health” issue licked. But the fact is, it takes more than just daily brushing to keep your mouth healthy. And now, we understand better than ever that oral health is linked to the health in the rest of your body.

One secret ingredient that many lazy brushers have been benefiting from for years is the flouride many municipalities put into the public water supply. Flouride is a mineral like calcium and after 50 years of testing has been proven as a safe addition to drinking water. Cities who have flouridated water have seen a marked decrease in the number of cavities for people, especially children, living in those areas. Make sure you’re getting enough flouride by swishing with a flouride rinse in the evenings if you don’t drink water, or only drink bottled water.

Another great way to improve your oral health is by flossing. The little string that runs up and down your teeth and under your gum line is doing more than just removing popcorn kernels. It’s scraping away the bacteria that cause plaque. Once the plaque hardens, it can be difficult to brush away. You don’t want plaque and bacteria, so make sure you’re flossing every day. Once a day is enough – more often isn’t helpful… unless of course you’re going after that stray piece of popcorn.

If you thought you had brushing down – that was the easy one, right? – you may be surprised to learn that if you’re brushing with the $3 toothbrush from the grocery store, you’re grossly under serving your teeth. Technology has changed a lot since you were a kid. You don’t have to make due with the free toothbrush from your dentist anymore. In fact, electric toothbrushes get your teeth a lot cleaner. The sonic toothbrushes do an even better job. According to a recent interview with a dentist that I read in Reader’s Digest, the Dentist said he recommended everyone get a sonic care toothbrush.

When I spoke to my dentist about it, they really recommended Sonic Care toothbrushes. I guess in addition to the extra fast brush-action of the bristles, the sonic care toothbrush also emits sound waves that help break up plaque on your teeth. I read about it in consumer reports and talked to a few people and started using the sonic care.

I bought a Sonicare toothbrush and decided to try it out. I enjoyed brushing with it – there was a 30-second timer to keep me on pace brushing all areas of my mouth. It got my teeth whiter, too. Even my dentist noticed at my next checkup.

Now I stay healthy by flossing daily, drinking flouridated water, visiting my dentist every six months and brushing with a sonic care toothbrush.

I hope you make a decision to keep your mouth in excellent condition. Talk to your dentist about how you can develop the optimal oral care routine for you!

This entry was posted on Friday, July 10th, 2009 at 2:41 am and is filed under Fluoride. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.