Great Oral Hygiene Habits to Establish Between Dental Visits

Everyone loves the fresh feeling they get after visiting the dentist for a regular cleaning. However, the current circumstances may have you feeling a little overdue. How can you maintain that feeling between cleanings and until you’re able to visit your dental office again? Our top tips for establishing healthy oral habits between visits are listed below!

Commit To A Dental Routine

The best way to maintain good oral health between visits to your dental office is by committing to a dental routine. Keeping your teeth as healthy as possible is something that you have to work on every single day!

The foundation to every dental routine should start with your brushing habits. Make sure that you’re brushing your teeth twice a day, every day, for two minutes at a time. Prone to forgetting? Bring a travel toothbrush with you to work as you try to incorporate regular brushing into your morning and nightly routine!

Flossing is also a vital part of a good dental routine. Take the time to floss once a day and use mouthwash as needed.

Cut Back On Unhealthy Habits

Unhealthy habits have a huge effect on your oral health! Make it a priority to stop smoking and cut back on sugary foods and beverages to keep your teeth looking healthy.

Our diet plays a big role in our dental health. Make sure that you’re incorporating plenty of fruits, vegetables, protein, and calcium into your diet to support healthy teeth.

Be Familiar With The Signs Of A Healthy (Or Unhealthy) Mouth

A healthy mouth has certain characteristics that you can look for. Ensure that your teeth are clean and free of food particles after brushing. Your gums should be pink in color and shouldn’t bleed when flossing. Bad breath can also be an indicator of underlying health concerns.

If you see signs that your oral health is declining, call your dental office and make an appointment for as soon as possible.

Schedule Regular Dental Appointments

It’s important to note that these habits do not serve as a total replacement for visiting your dentist. Once you’re able to do so, make an appointment with your dentist for a regular check-up and cleaning. You should strive to visit your dentist every six months!

Starting these habits early on will give your mouth the best chance to be healthy for a while. Besides, developing great oral hygiene habits is essential, after all!

COVID-19 Update

We hope you and your family in good health. Our community has been through a lot over the last few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety. Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice as you may have seen during your previous visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you a about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe. Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agencies’ recommendations. You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example for your safety when returning to our office the following protocols will be in effect.

  • All staff will be wearing appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that is disposed of after each patient.
  • We have installed new state of the art HEPA air filters in each operatory. Each filter is designed for a space of 700 sq. ft. and each operatory is approximately 100 sq. ft.
  • We are lengthening the procedure times and the times between appointments to allow for double sterilization of each operatory after each procedure. You may notice a slight changing in your appointment time due to this.
  • Your temperature will be taken and documented upon arrival.
  • A quick health questionnaire will be requested from you upon arrival
  • Only one patient will be allowed in the reception area at a time to ensure social distancing.
  • We will be requesting patients wear a face mask when able to during their visit.
  • Each morning our staff will undergo a series of questions that would indicate any risk for COVID-19 in addition to having their temperature taken.
  • We will be working the landlord on cleaning all common areas in the building including the elevator, door handles, and bathrooms.
  • Patients over the age of 65 are advised to consider postponing any non-emergency or elective dental care.
  • As added safety measures we recommend that patients with known pre-existing medical conditions including obesity, diabetes, COPD, hypertension, cardio-vascular, or immune-suppressed individuals consider postponing any non-emergency or elective dental care.

In addition to the protocols above we will be implementing precautions to limit production of aerosols including utilization of rubber dam, Isolite suction, and temporarily eliminating the use of the dental hygiene air polisher and ultrasonic instrument.

We appreciate your cooperation and understanding while these safety protocols are in place. We feel confident that by following these protocols we can safely practice dentistry and provide you the best possible care. Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends to the office.