Cleaning & Prevention
Preventive dental care accompanied by dental cleanings once every six months are essential to your oral health and functionality. Keep in mind, your oral health affects your overarching biological health. Fairbanks Dental Care’s cleaning and prevention combines 6-month check-ups with cleanings, preventative procedures and oral health advice. Ideally, cleaning and prevention will begin in your early years and continue throughout the remainder of your life.
Examples of preventative dentistry services include routine x-rays, teeth cleaning and 6-month oral examinations. You have the ability to prevent cavities as well as other oral health problems to a certain extent on your own. Brush and floss a minimum of two times per day. Rinse your mouth with mouthwash after you floss to eliminate leftover food particles. It will also help to avoid consuming acidic foods that threaten the integrity of tooth enamel.
Continue to meet with the dentist once every six months at a bare minimum and the stage will be set for a healthy mouth for the years and decades to come. Parents should be aware that preventative dentistry is also essential for children. Cleanings and prevention should start as soon as your child’s first tooth emerges. Preventative dentistry really will pinpoint issues early in your child’s life before they worsen and prove that much more painful and costly.
Teeth Cleaning
Cleaning your teeth on your own at home with brushing and flossing will only do so much. Every patient needs professional teeth cleaning performed at Fairbanks Dental Care. Fail to have your teeth cleaned at our office and you will find calculus accumulates on your teeth and you might even develop halitosis in spite of regular brushing and flossing. A truly professional teeth cleaning eliminates plaque that has hardened into tartar. This is accomplished with scaling.
The dentist uses a scaler to eliminate the tartar from the teeth and gums. Keep in mind, you cannot eliminate tartar with a toothbrush at home. Our specialized dental equipment is necessary to fully eliminate tartar from your mouth, ensuring your oral health and your biological health are protected. Every patient should know oral health dictates biological health to an extent as plaque can move into the bloodstream and lead to all sorts of different health problems.
The dental cleaning finishes with fluoride treatment. This treatment combats bacteria across several months after the cleaning. Fluoride is added to the teeth in the form of a paste, gel or varnish applied to the exterior of the teeth.
Periodontal Therapy
Periodontal therapy is a form of specialize care performed to prevent periodontal disease from returning. If you are diagnosed with periodontal disease, therapy will commence with scaling and root planing that eliminates harmful toxins. Harmful bacteria that spurs gum disease has the potential to return about four months after this treatment, meaning a subsequent visit to Fairbanks Dental Care for periodontal therapy will be necessary.
The prevention of periodontal disease is largely centered on removing plaque and tartar above the gum line that has the potential to become hardened calculus that sends toxins throughout your body by way of the bloodstream. Scaling and root planing requires the use of a highly specialized ultrasonic cleaner with a high vibration to remove hardened calculus. This procedure might take several appointments to ensure your gums are returned to full health.
Follow the dentist’s directions for care after scaling and root planing and you will have done your part to protect your teeth and gums. As an example, it is important that you do not smoke for the week following your periodontal therapy scaling and root planing. Minimize rinsing in the day following the therapy and take it easy for at least 24 hours.
Home Care
Your actions at home in the context of dental health matter just as much as those performed by the dentist. Fairbanks Dental Care can only do so much to safeguard your teeth and gums. It is up to you to floss and brush your teeth at least two times per day. Ideally, you will floss and brush the entirety of your teeth after each meal. Fail to take care of your teeth with a home care regimen and you will end up with more than bad breath. An insufficient or non-existent home care dental cleaning regimen will lead to the formation of cavities and hardened calculus that jeopardizes your oral health as well as your body’s health. Poor oral home care will also lead to toothaches in due time.
Aside from flossing and brushing after meals, using mouthwash is also an important component of your home care regimen. Try to remember to rinse with mouthwash after flossing your teeth so those tiny bits of food do not remain in your mouth. Swish the mouthwash around the entirety of your mouth for at least 20 seconds and spit it out. It will also help to brush the entirety of your mouth including the gums, cheeks, roof of your mouth, tongue and other areas instead of merely focusing on your teeth.