To prevent tooth decay, success or failure lies in the details. Have you done them well?

Although people's awareness of self-care is increasing, there are still many people suffering from tooth decay. The reason is that the causes of tooth decay are really complicated - bacteria, food, host (mainly the individual's own situation), time, so there are many targeted preventive measures that need to be taken. Sometimes, it's just a little bit off, and the result is failure. So, today let's talk about the details of successfully preventing tooth decay.

Image source: Wikipedia

01 Learn to brush your teeth effectively

Brushing teeth is the most effective way to remove dental plaque and food residues attached to the "exposed surface" of teeth. The key is to use a health toothbrush to perform the correct brushing operation. The so-called health toothbrush, as the name suggests, is a toothbrush that can play a health care role without any harm. The correct brushing operation is to make the bristles "tremble" (gingival junction), "knead" (occlusal surface) or "brush" (lip, cheek, tongue, palate) on the tooth surface. Mastering these movements can not only improve cleaning efficiency, but also do not harm teeth. In addition, effective brushing requires that all tooth surfaces of all teeth should be treated equally, and no one should be treated differently.

02 Learn to floss

Dental floss is the most effective tool to remove plaque and food residues attached to the "interproximal spaces" of teeth. The correct way to use dental floss is "sawing" (that is, when passing through the contact point of the teeth, do not force the dental floss into the gum junction) and "scraping" (when removing dental plaque and food residues, do a one-way scraping action close to the tooth surface, from the neck of the tooth to the occlusal surface or the incisal end). One gap usually corresponds to two adjacent surfaces, and there must be no omissions.

Image source: Wikipedia

03 Learn to eat sugar scientifically

To prevent tooth decay, it is important to eat sugar scientifically. The key is to control the frequency of eating sugar, pay attention to the way of eating sugar and the order of eating sugar. No one can absolutely avoid eating sugar, but you can reduce the frequency of eating sugar as much as possible, avoid long-term contact between sugar and teeth (try to choose sugary foods that do not stick to teeth, try to use a straw when drinking sugary drinks), and do not use sugary foods as the last food of a meal (desserts after meals are not advisable).

04 Use fluoride toothpaste

The fluoride in fluoride toothpaste can enhance the caries resistance of enamel by reducing the solubility of enamel and promoting the remineralization of enamel. Fluoride toothpaste mainly prevents caries from the perspective of host factors, and strengthening the body helps to expel evil spirits. At the same time, fluoride also has a certain inhibitory effect on microorganisms. Therefore, there is a real difference between toothpaste containing fluoride and toothpaste without fluoride.

05 Timely pit and fissure sealing

Pit and fissure sealing is an effective way to prevent pit and fissure caries. It is a health care method specially designed for molars and premolars. However, there is a time requirement for pit and fissure sealing, which is generally within 4 years after the tooth erupts. Teeth that have not suffered from caries for more than 4 years do not need pit and fissure sealing. Pit and fissure sealing is also a corrective type of anti-caries method.

06 Eliminate potential risks

In addition to the above aspects, crowded teeth may cause dead corners for bacteria and food residues to accumulate, and will also affect the effectiveness of brushing and flossing. Therefore, it is also a risk factor for tooth decay, which needs to be solved through dental orthodontics when necessary. In addition, wisdom teeth that fail to erupt normally often cause caries in the second permanent molars in front of them, so they should also be extracted in time to eliminate hidden dangers.

There are indeed many details that need to be paid attention to in preventing tooth decay, so the key is not only to have oral health knowledge, but more importantly to take action consistently.