How to Greet Spring With a Healthy Smile

Every March 20 marks World Oral Health Day, and it is a great time just to pause a moment and think about ways you might be able to improve your oral health.

March 20 is also the day before Spring officially arrives, and what could be nicer than greeting it with a healthy smile? Making smarter choices in the Spring could help protect your teeth and gums as we often take dental health for granted. Your teeth must work hard every single day and deserve the very best care you can give them. We have put together a few simple tips that could help improve your oral health, not just for March, but year-round.

Visit the Dentist Regularly, not just in Spring

Our first tip is easy, and hopefully, we already see you regularly but if not, get on the phone and schedule that appointment. Regular dental visits are a crucial preventative measure that will save you time and money in the longer term. We can detect early signs of dental disease, hopefully well before you notice anything is wrong and can provide the most up-to-date care to put things right!

Also, your oral health and general health are intimately connected, so good preventative dental care will help you enjoy better overall health too.

Brush Twice Daily and Floss Once-a-Day

A good oral hygiene routine goes a long way towards maintaining a healthy smile and only takes a few minutes each day. If your oral habits or your family’s brushing and flossing routine aren’t quite the best, we can help you improve them. Just ask if you’d like some tips about how to brush more thoroughly, or if you’d like to take the mystery out of correctly flossing as we promise it is quick and easy when you know how.

Protect Your Smile with a Mouthguard

Love playing sports? Make sure you wear a well-fitting mouthguard. Every year, thousands of people will knock out or chip their teeth during sports, and the severity of these injuries could often be minimized or even eliminated if only they had been wearing a mouthguard. Unfortunately, dental injuries can frequently require costly restorative work and a lifetime of dental expenses.

A custom-made mouthguard provides the very highest level of protection and is comfortable to wear, so it is far more likely to be worn! It could save an awful lot of heartache, time and money.

Choose Foods Carefully for Better Oral Health

The foods you choose can affect your oral health as well as your overall health. Sugar is well-known for causing cavities, but carbohydrate-rich foods like chips and crackers can stick to teeth, feeding cavity-causing bacteria. Other foods seem healthy, but contain hidden sugars, such as granola bars. Fruit juice is another culprit that is laden with sugar and is best enjoyed very occasionally. Even healthy whole fruit contains natural sugar and can be very acidic.

The foods you choose can affect your oral health as well as your overall health.

When you do eat something high in sugar, enjoy it as part of a main meal so that damage to your teeth is reduced. Also, make sure you consume plenty of calcium-rich foods such as unsweetened dairy products and cheese which are great for teeth. Generally, it is better to avoid frequently snacking between meals as this increases the risk of cavities.

Choose Tap Water for Healthy Teeth

As the weather warms up in Spring, you may find yourself drinking more water. That’s great, but you don’t need to drink expensive bottled water as Vancouver’s high-quality tap water is just fine and is the best drink for your teeth and for remaining well-hydrated. Drinking tap water instead of bottled water is better for the environment too.

Ready to enter spring with a beautiful smile? Make an appointment today!