Don’t Underestimate
The Value of Healthy Teeth
It’s tragic that one in five North Americans have no teeth after the age of 65. It’s also unfortunate that many people naively believe that poor dental hygiene simply means loss of teeth. Think again, because being toothless could end your life.
Mother’s advice was right, that teeth should be brushed after every meal. But Mother can’t be expected to be perfect, and what she didn’t know causes gum disease (gingivitis). What happens is that gums become infected and pull away from teeth, forming deep pockets where bacteria accumulate. And for want of good gums, the result may be bad breath, infection, lost teeth and other health problems.
Age-old Wisdom
In the 15th century Professor Givanna of Padua University suggested, “If all particles of food were removed from between teeth after each meal and the mouth cleaned night and morning, care could be effective.”
Improve dental hygiene
Blueberry Test
You may not know it, but if you aren’t doing enough to keep your teeth and mouth clean, you are on the path to losing more than your teeth. You may be keeping people at a distance from halitosis. To improve dental hygiene, it’s not enough to brush your teeth three times a day after meals. Friends will still be turning their heads if you don’t include the blueberry test.
Eat a bowl of blueberries and then brush your teeth 10 times. Then use a Waterpik, Stim-U-Dents or floss. You will stare in amazement at the many bits of blueberries still trapped between teeth. This is where bad breath begins. Brush the tongue too, which most people fail to do. The tongue contains deep furrows where debris collects and gases hover.
The blueberry test, by removing trapped food particles, helps to prevent halitosis but also helps to save gums from gingivitis which in turn saves teeth from falling out later in life.
How Necessary Are
Dental X-Rays?
Dental X-rays are, of course, required for legitimate reasons. But like anything they can be overdone. So always ask if the X-ray is really needed. No one really knows how much radiation we can receive before it causes trouble.
Ideally, we should all have radiation cards that show how much radiation we’ve received. Particularly since one of the major tests today is the CT scan that delivers large amounts of radiation. But hell will freeze over before such cards are in general usage.
So what should parents do? One can argue that markedly crooked teeth should be straightened, But for lesser imperfections it may be prudent for parents to ask, “Should I subject my child to potential risks of radiation, and how important is it for my child to have the perfect smile?”
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