It is no secret that a strong oral routine produces the best results for your pearly whites. Alongside this, the confidence in your smile will shine through every single time. Confident smiles also demonstrate overall positive wellbeing. Showing off your pearly whites should be a good enough reason to keep your teeth and gums strong at home.
When your oral health is neglected, the results on your teeth will begin to show. Bacteria will begin to penetrate in and around your teeth and this has the potential to cause niggling dental concerns. This is a danger of not maintain a strong oral routine. Failing to do so would introduce something known as dental plaque.
What Is Dental Plaque?
Plaque is a pale substance that coats around your teeth. The substance contains bacteria and food debris and forms as a sticky paste hiding the whiteness in your smile. Eventually, dental plaque can harden itself into tartar a calculus deposit that hardens on your teeth. Tartar is difficult to remove with a toothbrush. Plaque can also combine with bacteria and sugars to attack your tooth enamel.
The build-up of dental plaque can cause significant danger to your oral health. Here are some of the dangers to be aware of.
Cavities
Cavities form when the buildup of dental plaque penetrates inside your tooth enamel. This occurs when plaque, bacteria, and sugars combine to form into acid. The acid weakens your enamel and causes a tiny hole or opening in the centre of the tooth. If you eat a fad diet comprising of sugars, starch and you do not brush your teeth properly, plaque will build.
Tooth Decay
As mentioned above, an acid attack can weaken your tooth enamel, exposing your teeth to dangerous diseases and infections. When a cavity remains untreated, it can severely damage your tooth and cause dental caries (tooth decay). The dentist would need to assess the severity of the damage and determine whether you need restorative treatments or extraction treatment.
Periodontitis
When the enamel is exposed, your gums are in danger of becoming inflamed and infected. This is known as gingivitis, which is the first stage of gum disease. It can eventually get worse and turn to periodontitis (periodontal disease), the more advanced stage of gum disease. The infection can penetrate into your bloodstream and cause other adverse health conditions as well.
Dead Tooth And Tooth Loss
Tooth decay can become severe and incur severe damage to your teeth and weaken your gums. When your teeth are infected, you’re in danger of losing a tooth completely. This is even worse for your overall oral health because your bone strength weakens too, which is an important commodity in keeping your teeth strong within the socket. The infection will gradually eat away at the bone and your teeth will become loose and fall out.
Adopt A Strong Oral Routine…
Dental plaque is the first sign that your oral routine isn’t strong enough. At a check-up appointment, the dentist will need to scrape the plaque off your teeth. You may also entertain the option of teeth whitening treatment to lighten the shade of your teeth and to remove dental plaque. The dentist will likely recommend an oral routine to help you look after your teeth at home. Click here to read more about what constitutes a strong oral routine.
Regular check-ups at the dentist are important for strong oral health. If you’re due a check-up, we at Western Sydney Smiles are ready for you. Simply contact us to check yourself in today!
