Oral Health: Don't Ignore Your GumsOral Health: Don't Ignore Your Gums


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Oral Health: Don't Ignore Your Gums

When you go to your dentist, you are likely concerned about cavities and the stains on your teeth. If you are like me, then you probably never thought much about your gums. Unfortunately, this caused me to form a serious gum recession condition. My dentist said that hard brushing practices, poor flossing techniques, and even the consumption of sugary foods led to the recession. After some deep scaling treatments, I was informed that I needed a gum graft procedure. The gums are extremely important to your health. They provide your teeth with the nutrients they need and they protect the sensitive dental roots. The gums even keep bacteria away from your jaw bone. Don't ignore your gums like I did. Read my blog and learn about proper oral care techniques. Prevention practices can easily save your gums from necessary restoration.

Blunders to Avoid When Whitening Your Teeth

You can whiten your teeth effectively and safety a home if you go about it the right way. For starters, make sure you don't make any of these mistakes with your DIY teeth whitening.

Avoiding Dental Consultation

DIY whitening doesn't mean that the dentist doesn't have a role in the process. You need to consult the dentist first even if you intend to bleach your teeth at home. Here are some of the specific benefits you will get from the consultation:

  • The dentist will examine your teeth and advise you on any necessary treatments before whitening. For example, you should deal with any dental ailments you might have first.
  • The dentist will diagnose the cause of the discoloration and determine the best whitening product for your case.
  • The dentist will advise you on the safe whitening products to use.
  • The dentist will warn you about potential complications and advise you on how to deal with them.

As you can see, you will miss out on a lot if you just buy a whitening kit and start the bleaching alone. You might not even get the results you desire if you go it alone.

Ignoring Instructions for Use

Every legitimate whitening product comes with instructions for use. The main ones here are the amount of bleach you should use and how long each bleaching session should last. Using more bleach or bleaching for longer durations may whiten your teeth more or faster, but such practices also increase the risk of complications. For example, you might end up with dentin hypersensitivity.

Using Over-The-Counter Trays

There are various forms of DIY teeth whitening; one of them involves the use of whitening trays. You fit the trays, which contain the whitening bleach, over your teeth. The trays need to fit over your teeth snugly so that the bleach can touch every inch of your enamel for perfect bleaching. Unfortunately, over the counter whitening trays might not feet you that well. You are likely to be unimpressed with the results or even end up with uneven whitening.

Daily Whitening

Lastly, your teeth might lose their initial whiteness a short time after bleaching, but that doesn't mean that you should whiten them every day. Sure, a retouch might be necessary somewhere down the line, but you shouldn't bleach your teeth too frequently. Too frequent bleaching would be harsh on the teeth and can damage the enamel. Consult your dentist on just how frequent it is safe to bleach your teeth.