Dental care by brushing may date as far back as the Babylonians and their ingenious use of a twig. We are fortunate that we do not have to cut a twig, fray the end and scrub our teeth with such a tool.

Today we have an assortment of tooth brushes available to us for our dental needs. Brushes range from a straight brush with bristles ranging from very soft to extremely stiff, to rotary electric brushes and brushes that use sound waves to blast plaque from the recesses of our teeth.

Our choices are abundant, but the most important thing is that we brush!

You should brush your teeth at least twice a day. A soft bristle will clean without damaging the gums. Also be careful. Many of us think in an over-abundant mode. If 2 minutes is good then wouldn’t five or ten minutes be better.

Your teeth are with you for life. After your permanent teeth come in, there are no more natural replacements. Excessive brushing, over time will wear down the enamel and cause premature damage to your teeth. It may also damage your gums. So stick with the two minute limit. That will allow plenty of time to clean your teeth and gums.

We talk about brushing our teeth. But in effect, you are cleaning your mouth. Bacteria forms everywhere in your mouth, not just on your teeth. So take the time to gently brush your gums, the inside of your cheeks and yes, your tongue.

Many brands of toothpaste are available. Any brand that provides you with fluoride protection is usually good. Be careful to ensure that it does not have abrasive cleaning material in the paste. This too, over time and you certainly want to be around for a long time, can cause excessive wear to your teeth.

You do not need a large glob of toothpaste on your brush. Don’t follow the example of the commercials where they squeeze toothpaste the length of the bristles. Yes this will sell more toothpaste but it will not increase the effectiveness. You only need a small amount, about the size of a pea, too clean your teeth.

To brush effectively:

1) Use a soft bristle brush.

2) Use fluoride toothpaste with no abrasive compound included.

3) Brush for two minutes.

4) Brush your gums, inside cheeks and tongue.

5) And brush twice a day.

If you will consistently apply these simple rules, along with correct and conscientious flossing, you will enjoy excellent dental care. Look for correct flossing techniques in another article.

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Dental clinics are typically places you visit when you have some problems with your teeth. You will find many dental clinics, but ensure that the dental practitioners in these clinics have good experience in handling various types of dental cases.

If you are looking for the best oral care then you should take into consideration the facilities that these places offer. The problem is that there are many places that have excellent facilities but the dental experts there may not be really experienced, while there are other clinics where you have excellent dentists, but the facilities and equipments in the clinic may not be as you would expect.

One significant aspect to look for when searching for a dental clinic is to check for their accreditation, because this will give you an idea whether the clinic is sticking to the rules and regulations regarding how they service their patients.

Teeth implant has become a major process in dentistry these days and there are ever so many people who are opting for teeth implant. And implanting teeth is an extremely expensive procedure these days. So unless you find a clinic that has the reputation for doing this sort of work, you will land yourself in deep trouble.

Before deciding on a clinic, ensure that you visit the clinic which will give you a fair good idea of how they function and whether they have all the necessary equipment. A well run clinic will have no objection to your visiting them, as they may have nothing to hide. The doctor should be able to explain all the details of your problem clearly to you. Usually dental clinics that do dental implants will give you a guarantee on their work for a certain number of years. And if something happens to go wrong in that period of time they will fix it free of cost.

There are also dental care units that offer free services to the people in the lower income group and in such places you will find many private dental practitioners offering their services. So if you do not have the finances to visit one of the more expensive dental care units settle for one that is affordable but offers excellent services.

One of the best ways of finding a good dental clinic would be to ask around among friends and relatives and also look up the internet and the reviews that people give so as to affirm that the place you are visiting is a well established one with clean records of service.

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Losing a permanent tooth can cause changes to the way a person talks, eats, or how they smile. Before the popularity and availability of dental implants, patients were only able to choose between fixed bridges or a removable partial denture. The problem with fixed bridges and partial dentures is that they wear away at the remaining teeth and often have to be replaced every seven to 15 years. They also can break down the existing bone area where the missing tooth was located.

What is a Dental Implant?

Dental implants are becoming a popular choice for those patients missing permanent teeth. These implants look and feel like the natural tooth that was lost. It is fitted with a titanium root that is implanted into the bone of the jaw. The process can take several months and multiple trips to a dental office. The reason is that patients have to heal in-between steps of the process.

Criteria for Dental Implantation

For patients who are missing permanent teeth, they may be a logical long-term replacement option. The following criteria is used to determine if a patient is an ideal candidate for implants:

• More than one permanent tooth is missing
• Jawbone is fully grown and developed
• Has an adequate amount of bone remaining to help secure the implants
• The oral tissues of the mouth are healthy
• The patient has no health issues that would affect the bone from healing
• Doesn’t want to or can’t wear dentures
• Looking to have speech improved
• Willing to commit to the process, which takes several months to complete

69% of adults ages 35 to 44 have lost at least one permanent tooth. 26% of adults over the age of 74 have lost all of their permanent teeth. The most common causes for permanent tooth loss include gum disease, tooth decay, a root canal that failed, or an accident to the teeth.

Is Dental Implant the Right Choice?

Dental patients are the ones who have to make the final decision on a dental implant. Implants are a new enough technique, and it requires specialized training on the part of the dentist.

Some patients cannot wear a partial, denture, or fixed bridge, making a dental implant the only logical solution to fix their teeth and to restore their quality of life. If a patient meets all of the criteria listed above, they should talk with their dentist about the possibility of using a dental implant to complete their smile.

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If you have to use dentures for normal eating and everyday wear, you certainly know how much of a headache they can be. Slipping, grating, or irritating dentures can easily cause jaw pain and run the risk of infections. Dentures require frequent cleaning beyond normal brushing in order to retain their color, durability, and function. What is worst is how expensive the process can be if your dentures have fractured and new casts must be ordered. In many cases, dentures are such a frustration that it is a much better decision to do away with them altogether and pick up a new medical alternative to traditional dental substitutions. One day dental implants can be the key to a new, healthy mouth of teeth and a hassle-free approach to all eating or chewing problems that dentures cause.

Nearly all denture users report some semblance of pain or irritation with their products. This is because dentures are not naturally balanced and structured like naturally forming teeth, so that their usage does not exactly follow like normal. First-time users of dentures particularly are vulnerable to extreme grinding on soft, newly exposed gums. Most denture adhesives are difficult and unpleasant to use, some will not last through the entire duration of a day, while still others form nasty-tasting chemical reactions with the bacteria in your mouth. Sadly, denture technology has come to an impasse — the difficulty in preparing a proper fit with sealed edges and no loose parts lies in the cost. Form fitting dentures are available for purchase, but can cost several times more than their basic counterparts can, certainly a hard decision for seniors living on a fixed income.

More than mere discomfort, however, can be serious pain. If the gums are too weak or poorly cleaned, the surface of the skin is prone to breaking and bleeding. In other cases, sores may grow that are extraordinarily painful to the touch and take days, perhaps even weeks, to vanish. The worst dangers of all, however, are infections that can sprout if the dentures have lodged particles underneath your mouth, most of the time, pain results from an imbalance in the ridges of the mouth. The complexities of bones and jaw muscles create a wavy, shifting map that a set of dentures will have difficulty settling upon. Jaw ridges are not uniform in any patients, so that no two people can wear the same set of dentures without a bit of slipping. Properly modified dentures can adjust and settle into jaw ridges, but very few patients have the finances or the time for a select model.

Luckily, an easy and fast solution is available to those who are tired of clunky, obsolete dentures. One day dental implants are a new procedure available at your family dentist. The field of cosmetic orthodontic surgery has advanced by leaps and bounds since the advent of computer programs that can map out a new set of artificial teeth. Unlike simple dentures, these dental implants are directly screwed into the jaw, making it impossible for new teeth to slide about and create sores.

One day dental implants are just that: you can walk into your dentist’s office after the preliminary adjustments and walk out with a new, vibrant, form-fitting set of teeth. Your dentist can map out the advance of bone, so surgeons are capable of reducing areas that would push against the teeth and screws. In other words, there are no more hassles of having to replace, clean, or adjust dentures.

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Dental implants are small inserts, which are surgically placed in the jawbone beneath the gums. Commonly known as teeth implants, most dental implants available today are in the shape of screws, blades or frames. Once the dental implantologist determines that the implant has firmly integrated with the jawbone, he or she will mount replacement teeth, together with abutments, onto them.

How do they work?

Dental implants are made from biocompatible materials like titanium, and have tiny ridges and pits on their surface. This allows the bone to grow so closely around an implant, that it effectively adheres to it, providing a stable support for artificial teeth. Bridges or fixed dentures that are attached to teeth implants do not move around in the mouth, enabling patients to speak and eat comfortably.

To receive teeth implant treatment, a patient needs to possess healthy gums and adequate jawbone to support the implant. In addition, they should also be in good general health. While there is no upper age limit for dental implant treatment, the lower age limit is around 15 to 17 years, to allow for the jawbone to fully develop.

Below are two of the most common types of dental implant systems usually advised by most implant dentists:

• Endosteal implants: These teeth implants are directly placed into the jawbone, after drilling a pilot hole. After a healing period of a few months, abutments together with prosthetic teeth are loaded onto the implant.
• Subperiosteal dental implants: These implants consist of a metal frame that is placed over the jawbone, just below the gum tissue. As the bone and gums heal, the frame gets fixed to the jawbone. After healing is complete, artificial teeth are mounted to the frame posts that protrude from the gums.

After a patient undergoes dental implant treatment, it is important that they practice meticulous oral hygiene and visit their dentist regularly, to ensure the long-term success of their implants.

Downtime for Dental Implant Treatments

Dental implant treatments are generally considered to be more complicated than traditional tooth restoration procedures like dental bridges, with the downtime varying from patient to patient. Some common factors on which the downtime may depend are:

• The density of the jawbone.
• General physical condition of the patient.
• The position of the missing tooth in the mouth (front or back).

The actual process of inserting dental implants may not take much time, but the period for planning, healing and recovery usually takes a few months. For an average patient, a tentative time-table might look like this:

• Planning: During this stage the dental implantologist conducts a detailed evaluation of a patient’s oral condition. This process is generally completed in around a month.
• Insertion of the Implant: The duration of this stage varies from one to three days, depending on the number of teeth implants to be fitted in the jaw. This stage involves the drilling of a tiny hole in the jawbone, into which an implant is embedded, and left to heal.
• Healing: This could take anywhere between three to six months, depending on the general health and healing ability of a patient. During this process the bone grows closely around the teeth implants, effectively adhering to the metal.
• Final reconstruction: Depending on the number of prosthetic teeth to be fitted, this process could take between one to three days.

If your missing teeth are making you uncomfortable, the best thing to do is to visit a good cosmetic dentist, who will advise you about which types of dental implants would be the best for you, as well as assess your suitability for the treatment.

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