Prevention, prevention, prevention. Dental protection places loads of deal with avoiding oral well being issues — a lot in order that profit plans normally cowl routine checkups and cleanings at 100%.
There are two key causes for this deal with prevention. First, common visits to the dentist will show you how to preserve good oral well being and doubtlessly keep away from some points altogether. Second, within the occasion that you just do have a dental drawback, your dentist can detect it early and start therapy that can assist you keep away from extra expensive and complicated procedures down the highway.
However a wise preventive dental technique doesn’t start and finish at your dentist’s workplace. It additionally contains your day by day routine at house and different measures you are taking to keep up a wholesome smile, which brings us to fluoride — an efficient option to stop cavities and care to your tooth.
What Is Fluoride and How Does It Assist?
Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral that strengthens the exhausting outer floor of your tooth referred to as tooth enamel. It could possibly even assist reverse early indicators of tooth decay. Right here’s the way it works:
- Your tooth enamel steadily thins over time, as acids from meals and drinks put on it down.
- Utilizing fluoride toothpaste and getting fluoride from different sources will help rebuild (or “remineralize”) any weakened areas of tooth enamel. This makes your tooth extra proof against these cavity-causing acids.
- To successfully defend your tooth, fluoride toothpaste ought to be included as a part of your on a regular basis oral well being care.
Water fluoridation reduces tooth decay by greater than 25% for kids and adults. That is a giant distinction!1
Make Fluoride A part of Your Each day Routine
Whether or not you already know it or not, you might be possible defending your tooth and receiving fluoride from one of many sources beneath every day.
Cavity-Combating Toothpaste
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You need to brush your tooth with fluoride toothpaste twice a day for 2 minutes every time.
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All toothpastes which have earned the American Dental Affiliation (ADA) Seal of Acceptance comprise fluoride. Which means in case your toothpaste’s packaging contains the ADA seal, you’re defending your tooth with fluoride.
Straight From Your Faucet
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About 75% of group water techniques add fluoride to their city’s water to assist stop tooth decay, which suggests water proper out of your faucet is probably going a terrific supply of fluoride.
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Why is fluoride in faucet water? As a result of it really works! Group water fluoridation has finished a lot to scale back tooth decay that it has been named one in every of 10 nice public well being achievements of the twentieth century.
95% of toothpaste bought in the USA incorporates fluoride.2
There are different methods to strengthen your tooth with fluoride, however they won’t be a part of your day by day routine. Different strategies embody:
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Mouthwash: If mouthwash is a part of your oral well being routine, you’ll find choices that embody fluoride. Nevertheless, it’s not beneficial for kids beneath the age of 6 to make use of mouthwash with out approval from their dentist.
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Dental visits: Adults and kids who’re at a excessive danger for cavities could have their dentist apply fluoride on to their tooth with a gel, foam, varnish, or rinse.
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Fluoride dietary supplements: Your dentist may give you a prescription for a pill, drop, or lozenge that acts as a fluoride complement. That is sometimes finished for kids who may gain advantage from further fluoride, both as a result of they’re at greater danger of cavities or as a result of they don’t have entry to fluoridated water.
Fluoride and Defending Youngsters’s Smiles:
It’s necessary to oversee your youngsters as they brush their tooth to verify they use the correct amount of toothpaste and restrict the quantity they swallow. An excessive amount of fluoride might be dangerous to youngsters and enhance the danger of gentle fluorosis (tooth discoloration) whether it is overused. Right here’s how a lot toothpaste your youngsters ought to be utilizing:
- Ages 3 and beneath: Use an quantity the dimensions of a grain of rice of fluoride toothpaste
- Ages 3 and up: Use a small pea-sized quantity of fluoride toothpaste
