Preventive measures and dental hygiene

Dental hygiene

The mouth is used daily, several times a day, for eating, speaking, smiling, kissing, etc.; it is also the centre of the main interactions with others. It is therefore important and in everyone’s interest that you take care of it, not only to avoid unpleasant odours for others, but also and above all to avoid developing dental and periodontal diseases.

Dental hygiene includes all the things you can do on a daily basis to keep your mouth clean and healthy and to reduce the risk of developing oral diseases. It’s not something that can be left to your dentist and dental hygienist to do during routine cleanings! Every little thing you do counts. Below you will find details on these small steps and tools that can help you maintain good oral hygiene.

Remember that no matter how hard you try at home to keep your mouth clean, you still need to continue your regular visits to your dentist for professional cleaning once or twice a year or more frequently depending on your situation. During these visits, your oral health professionals may also be able to detect any diseases affecting your mouth that, if not discovered early, could lead to more extensive, costly and invasive treatments.

Brushing teeth

The first thing you should do when discussing dental hygiene is to brush your teeth. This simple act should be done at least twice a day. The most important brushing of the day should be done before going to bed to remove as much food residue as possible from your mouth, as well as the accumulation of plaque on your teeth to delay the appearance of tartar, which can be harmful to your gums.

It’s one of the things we learn at a young age, but do you really know what good tooth brushing is?

It all starts with a soft-bristled toothbrush with a small head to better reach all tooth surfaces and difficult areas.
A good brushing time is about 2 minutes. You should hold the toothbrush at a 45-degree angle to the teeth to avoid premature wear to the gums. Use vertical strokes to brush all tooth surfaces, i.e. the outer surface on the cheek side and the inner surface on the palate side. A horizontal movement should be made for the chewing surface of the teeth.
You should also brush your tongue and the inside of your cheeks, areas that are often overlooked.
In recent years, several types of electric toothbrushes have appeared on the market. These allow for a good brushing with much less effort than a manual toothbrush. They are becoming increasingly popular with children and the general population, although they were originally designed for people with limited dexterity. The advantage of an electric toothbrush is that it cleans teeth well by holding it in place for a few seconds on each tooth and then moving on to the next.
It is recommended that you change your manual toothbrush or electric toothbrush head every 2-3 months; a good way to remember this is to associate this change with the start of each season.
Use a toothpaste adapted to your condition according to your dentist’s advice; there is now a wide range of different toothpastes, such as anti-cavity, gum protection, whitening, sensitive toothpaste, etc.

Dental floss

The interdental spaces are difficult to reach with a toothbrush because of their narrowness. To clean them properly, it is advisable to floss once a day, ideally at bedtime. Ask your dental hygienist or dentist for advice on how to best use this necessary tool.

Flossing helps to remove plaque and food residue from between the teeth. It prevents cavities and gum disease. You will probably need about an arm’s length of floss to allow you to pass it between each interdental space for optimum cleaning.

Contrary to what you might think, it is more effective to floss before brushing your teeth. Food residue caught between your teeth may end up on your teeth, tongue or elsewhere in your mouth after you floss. Subsequent brushing removes this residue that would be left in your mouth if you brushed your teeth first.

The interdental brush

When your teeth are not fully touching, it may be worthwhile to use an interdental brush in addition to normal brushing and flossing. These small brushes are designed to clean the larger spaces between the teeth. Simply insert the brush into the spaces between the teeth using gentle pressure. They come in different sizes, so ask your specialist which one would be best for you.

Remember that it is important to change your brush regularly, at the same rate as your toothbrush or even more frequently depending on how worn the brush is.

Mouthwash

In addition to improving breath, using a mouthwash is an excellent complement to brushing and flossing. Mouthwash is known to limit the growth of pathogens in the oral cavity by destroying them and therefore preventing them from accumulating on the teeth. This results in a reduced risk of developing gingivitis or plaque build-up.

There are several types of mouthwash:

A ‘conventional’ mouthwash will remove more plaque than normal brushing and flossing once a day and can be used daily at the end of your oral cleaning routine. It should be noted that those containing alcohol are not recommended for daily use because of the drying of the mouth they can cause and the unknown effects of long-term use.
Some mouthwashes can remove more plaque and are used BEFORE flossing and brushing. Their daily use is indicated for people for whom plaque is deposited quickly and in greater quantities on the teeth.
Other mouthwashes are called « antiseptic« ; they contain disinfecting agents, the most commonly used being chlorhexidine. They are used in the event of an injury affecting the mouth, after a dental extraction or after jaw surgery to keep the mouth clean when brushing the teeth cannot be done properly for a few days. However, they should not be used over a long period of time because of the risk of burning and long-term dryness of the mouth from repeated use.

After a mouthwash with a mouthwash, it is best to wait about 30 minutes before eating or rinsing the mouth, except when using a mouthwash that is used before brushing, as in this case rinsing the mouth during the rest of the oral routine is inevitable!

Halitosis (bad breath)

At some point in your life, you may suffer from halitosis, the scientific term for bad breath. Halitosis can be temporary or chronic. There are many causes for both types, and fortunately some are easily treated to resolve the situation.

The main cause is inadequate or incomplete oral hygiene, which results in more bad breath bacteria in your mouth (teeth, gums, tongue, cheeks). If your oral hygiene is not optimal, you may also have more plaque on your teeth and eventually develop cavities and gum or periodontal disease, such as gingivitis or periodontitis. In such cases, if you adopt healthy oral habits, as described above, and schedule regular visits to your dentist, you can potentially address much of the problem.

The other most common and recognised causes of halitosis are described below.

The multiple causes of halitosis

Eating and drinking habits

Food debris that remains for a long time between teeth or even on partial or complete dentures.
Consumption of certain foods known to cause unpleasant odours, despite proper tooth brushing, such as onions and garlic.
Sweet foods, strong cheeses or caffeine, if you do not brush your teeth after eating them.
Tobacco products or other substances that can be smoked (cigars, cannabis, etc.).

Physiological causes

Oral problems and diseases, ranging from simple cavities, abscesses or ulcerations, to fungi that proliferate in the mouth, to the much rarer oral cancers.
Mouth breathing or stress can dry out your oral cavity and cause bacteria to grow. Saliva, which is scarce during mouth breathing or stress, keeps the mouth moist and prevents the bacteria that cause bad breath from multiplying.
Fluctuations in female hormones, especially during pregnancy, as they can cause a number of ailments, including gum inflammation and acid reflux.
Respiratory tract infections due to colds, flu or chronic conditions.
Much more rarely, halitosis can be caused by uncontrolled chronic diseases, such as diabetes, or serious diseases that can affect the stomach, intestine, liver, kidneys or lungs. It is therefore important to consult your family doctor if you have chronic bad breath that cannot be explained by any of the above causes, to investigate your condition further.

Here are some ways to keep your breath fresh and stop halitosis:

Follow the tips described above for optimal oral hygiene, such as daily flossing and mouthwash, and proper tooth brushing techniques, even when wearing dentures.
Visit your dentist for a routine cleaning at the frequency recommended for you.
In addition to brushing your teeth, scrape your tongue once a day, preferably at bedtime, with a flat-headed tongue scraper (start at the back of the tongue and gently work your way forward). Remember to rinse the tongue scraper after each use.
Nasal baths and gargles with saline solution, especially during colds and influenza, to limit secretions in the throat and sinuses.
Drink plenty of water (at least 8 glasses a day). Bacteria that cause halitosis are not fond of moist environments.

Limit foods that cause bad breath (onions, garlic, coffee, alcohol, etc.) at social events or limit the consequences by brushing quickly after eating or chewing sugar-free gum.
Eat plenty of dietary fibre and chew fibrous vegetables such as parsley or wintergreen; these small actions simply increase the amount of saliva in your mouth.
Use sugar-free chewing gum to produce more saliva for dry mouth.
Check with your pharmacist or doctor if your treatments are causing dry mouth problems that may be responsible for bad breath.
Have your dentures checked by a health professional to determine if they need to be adjusted or cleaned in other ways.
In the case of chronic bad breath despite your efforts to clean your mouth well, discuss it with your general dentist to investigate further to identify the source of the problem.