Your oral health is one of the most important aspects of your body. Many people overlook it, but the health of the teeth and gums can affect many other health conditions in your body. If you do not care for it, you can lose far more than a few teeth and need more than just a few fillings.
Gum disease can lead to the rest of the body’s health weakening. The disease involves bacteria, which gets into the bloodstream. You can find yourself struggling with more conditions.
Then there’s the fact that your teeth are one of the first things people will see. If you have bad teeth, you are likely to be self-conscious of them. Your confidence is affected, meaning you can find it harder to maintain and gain new relationships. Being satisfied with life is much harder when your mental health is negatively affected.
So, you need to take steps to improve your oral health. Make sure you prevent as much as possible and repair the damage that has been done. You need to remove the bacteria, whiten the teeth, and protect teeth from decay.
This does not need to be that difficult. With five changes to your lifestyle, you can improve your oral health almost instantly. Some tips will take a little longer to see the results, but the positive effects will be noticed within your mouth right away. Here are five effective tips that you need to follow now to improve your oral health.
Take Steps to Balance Your Hormones
The first thing you want to do is take steps to balance your hormones. This is going to be the hardest on the list to do because there are so many factors that affect your hormonal balance. However, it is also one of the most important, which means it takes pride of place as the first tip.
Hormones affect the whole body. When it comes to your oral health, a hormonal imbalance can cause an imbalance in the alkaline/acid nature of your saliva. This will directly affect the body’s ability to fight off disease and heal from disease.
If you have a hormonal imbalance, you could find that your mouth is more likely to succumb to bacteria growth. Gum disease is more prevalent, and you can find it harder to slow the progression down. This condition can spread to the jaw, causing permanent damage to the bones. Preventing it from getting so bad is essential.
The hormonal imbalance can also cause more acid in your mouth. Some acid is needed to help clear out bacteria and brighten the teeth. However, it does cause a problem for your enamel—the white covering on your teeth. The enamel is supposed to protect the pulp in your teeth. Acid can cause the enamel to wear away, so the food, bacteria, and more acid get into the pulp and the nerves. You are more likely to suffer more tooth loss, pain, and nerve damage.
You will know if your hormones are out of balance. Other parts of your health will be affected. You can feel more stressed, struggle with sleep, and find your mental health is affected. You may also see physical signs on your skin, as hormonal changes will affect the natural oil production.
How do you balance out your hormones? This is undoubtedly one of the hardest things to do, but it is not impossible.
It will mean a change in your lifestyle. Change your diet and exercise routine. A healthy and balanced diet with a good exercise regime will help to release the happy hormones from the body. They will keep the negative hormones at bay. You can also take steps to reduce your stress levels naturally and focus on improving your sleeping pattern.
Change the Food You Eat
Even if a hormonal imbalance is not a problem, you will still want to look at your diet. The food you eat will affect your oral health.
This is not just about eating sweet foods. Even foods that are considered “healthy” can be bad for the teeth. It depends on the amount that you eat and when you eat them. However, sugary foods are among the worst culprits.
Food is so important that some Native American tribes never brushed their teeth. They did not suffer any decay in the mouth. Their teeth were straight and healthy throughout their lives. It was linked to the types of foods they ate (and the types that they did not eat) and the way they looked after their mouths in other ways.
The food you eat will give your body nutrients to fight off bacteria. You will also get minerals that will help to strengthen the cells in the teeth and gums. By supporting the addition of these minerals, you will help to improve the strength of your teeth to avoid decay and loss.
However, that is not enough. You also need to look at the amount of phytic acid within your diet. This is found in some “healthy” foods, especially some fruits. The acids will remain in the mouth and sit on the enamel. These acids wear the enamel and cause permanent damage to the teeth. They can also make the gums recede, causing the nerves at the bottom to become susceptible to the acids in foods.
Phytic acids are not just found in acidic foods. They are also found in grains and beans, so you will want to cut down on the amount of them that you eat.
Of course, sugars and starches can also cause problems for your teeth. Even natural sugars and starches are bad for them. You will need to reduce the number of fruits and starchy vegetables that you eat. The particles will cause more bacteria growth within the mouth, leading to more gum disease.
So, what can you eat? Healthy fats are important. They will help to draw out the bacteria and acids and remove them from your mouth. This moves us onto the next tip to protect your oral health.
Start Oil Pulling Daily
Oil pulling is one of the most effective ways to improve your oral health. Do not do this to replace brushing and flossing, but make it part of your daily oral health routine. You only need to oil pull once a day, but twice is effective.
Coconut oil is the best type of oil to use for this, but you can also gain benefits from olive, almond, groundnut, and others. Avoid vegetable oils, as they are full of other particles and compounds that are not good for the overall health.
The oil attracts the bacteria and plaque in the mouth. Those elements that have hidden deeper within the gums are extracted and removed from the mouth. You will get results instantly. By getting rid of the bacteria and acids, you will find that your mouth is less likely to succumb to damage. There isn’t the bacterium to cause your gums to become inflamed.
Oil pulling can also help to repair some of the damage through gum disease. Many oils have anti-inflammatory properties. They will help to reduce the redness within your mouth and prevent your gums receding further. The gums will sit flusher on your teeth, preventing gaps for bacteria to grow within later.
All you need to do is swish the oil around your mouth. Work slowly, so you can feel the oil getting in between your teeth to get rid of everything.
This is not the most pleasant thing to do at first. Try for five minutes and work your way up to oil pulling for 20 minutes every day. You can do things around the house while you do it if you are worried about using up too much time!
Always spit the oil out afterward. You want to remove all the acids and bacteria from your mouth as much as possible. Check out more info on oil pulling with almond oil here
Change Your Tooth Brushing Routine
It is not just about adding oil pulling to your routine. You need to change what you do when you brush your teeth. It is time to change the way that you brush.
The first thing to do is to stock up on an electric toothbrush. Your regular toothbrush just does not get into all the nooks and crannies of your teeth. It is not as efficient at removing the plaque, which leads to bacteria growth and tooth decay.
An electric toothbrush twists, as well as moves up and down. It rotates around all your teeth and will find it easier to get into gaps. You can get rid of far more plaque from the mouth. Your teeth remain protected for longer!
Electric toothbrushes will also help encourage brushing for the full two minutes. Some automatically turn off after the two minutes are up, so you do not run the risk of under or over brushing. They also have a change of vibration at 30-s
econd intervals to make sure you get around all your teeth uniformly.
Once you have brushed your teeth, make sure you floss your teeth. You can use dental floss if you want, or you can invest in soft picks. They are smaller toothbrushes that are designed to get into the gaps. They are much easier to hold than floss!
Even if your toothbrush seems to get into the gaps, there will be some that are missed. Flossing will help to remove food particles while it is soft, preventing the debris from sticking around and clinging to the enamel on the teeth. You reduce the chance of more bacteria growing in your mouth.
You can sometimes limit flossing to just once a day. Do it on a night if this is the case so that you can avoid the buildup of plaque and bacteria overnight. If you already have gum disease or you are prone to plaque buildup, your dentist may recommend that you floss twice a day. Do this before the oil pulling process.
Get Help for Teeth Grinding
Do you grind your teeth? Some people do it without realizing. You may even do it in your sleep, so you are not sure if it is a problem.
There are a few signs that teeth grinders experience. Your teeth wear away, and you may suffer headaches and jaw pain. The muscles are constantly working, which causes the tension within the face. Your dentist will also know signs of teeth grinding and will likely mention it if you have it. Your dentist will help you determine when you likely grind your teeth and help you watch out for your habits throughout the day.
Teeth grinding is bad. Not only do you ruin wear your teeth down, but you damage the enamel. It is easier for the bacteria and acid to get to the pulp and nerves within your teeth. Teeth grinding can also lead to teeth misaligning and jaw problems.
Getting help for your teeth grinding is one of the most effective things you can do to care for your oral health. There are two types of assistance you can get: damage preventative and teeth grinding prevention.
The former is where you will still grind your teeth, but you have guards in place to limit the amount of damage that happens. You will not get rid of all the symptoms. Full prevention will help to get to the bottom of your teeth grinding. You can prevent yourself from doing it through the night, avoiding all the symptoms and offering full long-term benefits.
Whichever one you choose to get, make sure you opt for one. Guards through the night can be an excellent initial step to look after your teeth.
Do make sure you wash out your guards and avoid drinking or eating with them in. You do not want bacteria to grow within the guards. You will just end up putting the bacteria straight onto your teeth!
Are You Ready to Protect Your Oral Health?
You do not need to change a lot of your lifestyle or routine. A few small changes will go a long way. While the first on the list is the hardest, it is also one of the most effective. You will find fixing hormonal imbalances will make it easier to make other changes in your life. You will find yourself more positive and be able to act to protect your teeth.
If you are worried about too many changes, start small. Switch your toothbrush first and start adding more flossing in your day. You can then move onto oil pulling and changing your diet. You will soon find that your teeth are brighter and healthier than ever before. It is time to stop regretting the past damage you have done and looked forward to a more robust future.
