Why Teeth Cleanings Are Important For Preventative Care
Dental teeth cleanings are one procedure that you're likely to encounter in a routine checkup. But aside from simply making your teeth cleaner, this procedure has a lot of health benefits for preventative care. Here are some ways that teeth cleanings help to prevent disease and illness.
Cavity Prevention
Teeth cleanings are very important for preventing cavities. They give your dentist a chance to remove any plaque that has been sitting on your teeth for a long time. It's natural for people to miss certain spots repeatedly when they are brushing and flossing; once you get into a routine, you can make the same mistakes over and over. If there's a particularly obvious spot that you're missing, your dentist can give you dye pills that you chew to show where spots of plaque are after you brush.
Periodontal Disease
Periodontal disease is a progressive gum disease that can lead to many other health complications; it even has a link to heart disease. Part of the dental cleaning involves going deep under the gums to remove hidden plaque that you can't reach while brushing.
Stains and Discoloration
Stained and discolored teeth can result from many years of plaque sitting on the teeth and gum line. A routine cleaning helps to remove this plaque. Otherwise, you may be looking at a need for dental veneers in the future to improve the coloration of your teeth. Professional teeth whitening is another option for dealing with persistent stains; your dentist can create teeth whitening trays with powerful whitening solutions to improve tooth color.
Oral Cancer
Oral cancer can be detected easily during a dental cleaning, even at its earlier stages. Your dentist will use this time to look closely at your teeth and check for any abnormalities. This is an important preventative service since the later stages of oral cancer can be fatal.
Damage from Broken Fillings and Crowns
Another thing that a dentist can check during the teeth cleaning is the presence of any broken tooth crowns or dental fillings. A broken filling or crown can be a great entry point for bacteria. especially in the case of a broken crown, which could easily expose dead root tissue to bacteria. You'll want to get a broken dental procedure corrected immediately. If the dentist notices any problems with broken fillings or crowns, they are likely to schedule you to come back to the office to fix it in the near future.
As you can see, the teeth cleanings aren't just all about keeping your teeth clean. They are a very important part of your dental checkup that helps dentists provide great preventative care. Contact a dental office like Willowdaile Family Dentistry to learn more.
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