Among the many benefits of having dental cleanings done, the bright side of having pearly whites is just the tip of the iceberg. Having your teeth cleaned is not only essential for the health of your teeth and gums, but also your overall health in general. So you may be wondering, how often should you book in for a dental cleaning?
Frequency Of Cleanings
Technically speaking, ensuring that it happens at least once a year with an annual dental check-up is the minimum that most people can get away with. However this completely depends person to person and can be less or more frequent accordingly. Certain individuals may be more prone to dental problems and would lead to them needing more frequent checkups and cleanings every 3-6 months, whilst overs may be less prone to dental issues and may only need to schedule a cleaning every 9-12 months.
Cleanings are performed by a dental/oral hygienist in a way that we simply can’t achieve with daily flossing and brushing. We might not notice the buildup day to day at home, however overtime it becomes more and more significant and can eventually lead to issues far worse than just an unpleasant appearance of your teeth.
Purpose Of Cleanings
On top of susceptibility to dental problems, care between checkups play a huge role in maintaining optimal oral health and determining the overall condition of a patient’s teeth. Professional cleanings and at-home care are essential in your oral hygiene routine. This comes down to daily flossing and brushing with a fluoride toothpaste twice a day, which is crucial in keeping plaque buildup at bay. This is super important as when plaque is left, it hardens into tartar, simply calcified plaque, which needs special tools to be removed.
Dental cleaning is necessary as we can’t remove all the buildup that forms even with regular flossing and brushing. This prevents many of the nasty things such as gum disease, bad breath and the breaking down of tooth enamel. Your oral hygienist is able to detect any tooth or gum issues before they become more serious, which can save you in the long run. On a larger scale, our overall health is deeply connected to our oral health, so a healthy mouth means a healthy body! Regular cleanings go further to prevent causes of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and pneumonia, which most people wouldn’t even think twice about.
Have a feeling your next dental cleaning may be overdue? Call us today to schedule your next check up and cleaning to get those pearly whites back to their healthiest again.
