Whether you have a date planned, [ lucky you!], you’re giving a presentation, or just enjoying hanging out with pals, everyone wants to feel the confidence to flash a cracking smile they can be proud of. We only get one chance to make a first impression after all.
Sometimes we might find ourselves lacking that confidence. From dodgy breath to yellowed or stained teeth, there are a number of dental hygiene probs that can make or break how willing we are to flash that smile.
Proper oral hygiene is the key to not only unlocking our confidence, but also to keeping our teeth and gums as healthy as possible. Luckily both aesthetic and health benefits go hand-in-hand when it comes to our mouth! Yeah.
Most of the dental hygiene basics are common knowledge and you probably follow most of them already.
But they’re are certain dental hygiene hacks, though, that we can know to “up level “our dental hygiene.
From choosing the right toothpaste to trying special foods, here’s a few examples of these oral hygiene hacks to help you keep your teeth beautiful and your confidence at a ten.
Detergent Foods – clean your teeth while you eat.
Did you know that these detergent foods actually help to clean your teeth while you eat? You ideally want to eat these as the last thing in your meal, it’s the closest thing you can do to actually brushing your teeth.
They’re fibrous foods like apple, carrots, celery, cucumber, cheese, as these foods are firm, crisp and the fibrous nature helps scrub away any bits and pieces from your teeth, which prevents bacteria from spending too much time on your teeth. They also increase your saliva production, which acts to remineralise our teeth by helping return our mouth to a neutral PH.
If you can include some of these detergent foods into your diet, it’s one of the easiest, most efficient ways to hack your dental hygiene and maintain that beautiful, bright smile. If you have a root about to find out some other examples of these foods, your teeth will thank you.
Choose The Right Toothpaste
Choosing the right whitening toothpaste is so important.
Not all whitening toothpastes are created equal. The ingredients they use to create the whitening effect varies from chemicals, to enzyme systems, to abrasives.
You need to avoid any tooth pastes that use abrasives for one major reason—they can damage your enamel, remove your enamel and cause way more harm than good if you use them for any length of time.
You might see an aesthetic improvement to your teeth from using whitening toothpastes with abrasives, but the end result is definitely not worth the temporary reward. They cause a lot of damage. Step away from the abrasive toothpastes……There are options like Colgate whitening, or other major brands, or toothpastes containing bicarbonate of soda or similar that are just as effective but do not have these negative side effects. Always avoid toothpastes with abrasives. It’s worth noting that over the counter whitening toothpastes can only help remove surface stains on teeth. To actually whiten the teeth themselves, you need to have proffesional tooth whitening. If that’s something you’re interested in, just give us a shout and we would be delighted to help.
Use Apple Cider Vinegar
Yep, sounds a bit weird but it has antibacterial properties which can reduce plaque levels, help bad breath, and even reduce the chances of tooth decay, by neutralizing the bacteria that’s present in our mouths.
Just swish apple cider vinegar around your mouth, briefly gargle it, then rinse with water. This can be a good hack for your dental hygiene. But it is important to remember that because apple cider vinegar is acidic, it’s best to dilute it with water and only use it immediately after meals. An unusual oral hygiene hack.
Use a Sugar Substitute Your Teeth Will Love
It’s a well-known fact that sugar directly causes tooth decay. The negative impacts of sugar on our teeth and actually on our general health, [don’t get me started on that one…..] can’t be understated.
It’s also a well-known fact that sugar is delicious though. Rather than cutting out sweets and treats altogether, consider xylitol, a sugar substitute that is not only sweet, but is actually good for your teeth.
Xylitol is found in small amounts in many fruit and vegetables and therefore it can be considered natural.
It’s in items like chewing gum and actually helps prevent tooth decay by reducing decay-causing bacteria found in our saliva, and also increases the level of salvia that is actually produced, allowing our mouth to naturally cleanse itself more effectively. This bang bang makes xylitol the perfect sugar substitute for your teeth.
Life is never perfect though, and enjoying a little bit of what we like is no bad thing really, just have the good stuff with your meal and really try not to have them in-between meals.
My Final Thoughts
We all want to have a smile that we can be proud of and confident in, and we all know that proper dental hygiene is so important in achieving that, so keep calm and keep brushing!
Dr. Russell Smith