Adult Dental Care Surprises
|November 26, 2015
If you want to avoid Adult Dental Care Surprises practice good oral hygiene and see your dentist at least twice a year, especially if you think you know everything you need to know about oral hygiene and how to avoid tooth loss.
Adult Dental Care Surprises: Many Dental Patients Lie about Flossing
It’s not just Santa Claus who knows whether you’ve been bad or good. Your San Diego dentist knows, too. If you’re one of the many adults – more than one-quarter of us – who lie to their dentist about flossing; beware, he knows.
Dentists know if you’re being dishonest about flossing if your gums bleed. Bleeding is the result of gum disease (gingivitis and periodontitis). Bacteria gather on and between your teeth and gums. That’s why it’s important to floss.
Flossing removes harmful bacteria and reduces plaque buildup, which can develop into tartar. Only a dental professional can remove tartar. Left untreated, it eventually can lead to tooth loss.
Adult Dental Care Surprises: You’re Never Too Old for Cavities
Good oral hygiene is an important part of your daily routine no matter how old you are, according to this post from USA Today writer Kim Painter. Specifically, 20 percent of older adults who still had their teeth had untreated cavities. Additionally, 15 percent of adults aged 65 to 74 and 22 percent of those over the age of 75 had lost all their teeth.
Regardless of age, without daily flossing and brushing and regular dental checkups, your mouth is susceptible to cavities, gum disease, and tooth loss.
Adult Dental Care Surprises: Women with Children Increase Dental Problems
Whether it’s due to biological factors or another reason, dental experts suggest that women who have had children ultimately increase their chances of dental issues. The feeling is that factors related to pregnancy are the culprits. Specifically, experts believe that “factors that come along with pregnancy, such as higher-than-normal levels of hormones, change the oral environment and increase a woman’s susceptibility to dental disease and subsequent tooth loss.”
The more children a woman has, the greater she increases her risk of dental problems. Whether you’ve had children or not, good oral hygiene is the best way to reduce dental problems and reduce your chances of needing dental implants.
Adult Dental Care Surprises: Only 10% of Older Americans have All Their Own Teeth
“By the time we reach age sixty-five fewer than 10 percent of us will have all our natural teeth,” according to a post in the Philadelphia Tribune.
While losing a tooth when you’re a child is a rite of passage, tooth loss when you’re full grown can be traumatic. Regardless of the reason, tooth loss can make it difficult to speak and chew, not to mention it can ruin your smile.
Don’t let Adult Dental Care Surprises happen to you, especially if tooth loss is having a negative impact on your life. Talk to your La Jolla dentist about whether dental implants are right for your situation.