Plaque

Have you ever ran your tongue on your teeth and felt a little fuzziness? Chances are, this is plaque. It’s one of the most common ailments that everyone has to deal with on a daily basis. It’s a collection of bacteria and you usually notice it when you haven’t brushed your teeth. It is treatable but if you don’t care for it, plaque can be dangerous for your teeth. Learning more about plaque is the best way for you to be prepared. The more you understand it, the easier it will be to stay hygienic. In our blog post today we’ll go in-depth on plaque, how it affects us, and what we can do to prevent it!

How Does Plaque Affect Us?

Plaque is made up of little bacteria cultures, food debris, and your saliva. It forms on the teeth after the leftover carbohydrates that you’ve consumed in the past build up. If you didn’t brush your teeth recently or just ate a lot of foods, your teeth will be high in sugars and starches (carbs). The bacteria, plaque, love these compounds and will feed on the remaining micro-nutrients to create a lot of acids. The acids are what will be damaging for your teeth, as they will wear down the enamel. If you were unaware, the enamel is the outermost layer of the tooth. It is a substance with a high amount of minerals that will vary in shades of white. It acts as a barrier to protect the tooth and is very hard. However, it can become susceptible to degradation. Plaque is usually the main cause of such decay. Additionally, the plaque can also enter your gums, and also the root of your teeth. They will pose as a threat in these areas as they are much harder to get to without a professional.

What Can I Do To Prevent Plaque Buildup?

Avoiding plaque altogether is nigh impossible, it is merely the result of our eating. Your dieting and hygienic routines can majorly impact its growth, though. For example, try to refrain from eating sugary snacks, chips or sticky foods. The contents of these foods are high in the carbohydrates and textures that love to stick to your teeth. By reducing the amount of these foods that you consume you’ve already made one step closer to preventing more plaque buildup. If you also supplement this dieting regiment with diligent dental care, you’ll be all the better for it. Through brushing your teeth and flossing, both at least twice a day, you can scrape and clear more plaque from your teeth. Also, using mouthwashes with fluoride will help to strengthen your enamel. That is important if you have had a lot of plaque in the past. Reinforcing the tooth’s natural protective layer will provide you with more assurance that the plaque will not be as destructive. Of course, if these options are not as effective, you can talk to your dentist about getting dental sealants. These are plastic coatings which are put onto the chewing surfaces of your molars, they will act as a buffer between your actual teeth and the foods which come into contact during eating.

Contact Us, We Can Help You Prevent The Growth Of Plaque!

Here at Gentle Dental, we want to ensure that you have the best kind of oral hygiene. That means going above and beyond in the care we take for your teeth. Through preventative and preemptive measures we can work together to keep your mouth clean and your oral hygiene routine up to date with all the best techniques and tricks. It starts with awareness though, and for that reason, we’ve developed these blogs to keep our community informed.