Maintaining a good smile, including taking care of your teeth, takes a lifetime of effort. You still need to take the necessary precautions daily to keep your teeth healthy and free from decay, even if you’ve been told that your smile is beautiful. Investing in the correct dental care products and being conscientious about your routine is essential. We have curated six items you should check off your list to keep your teeth in tip-top shape. Here at Barrhaven Dental Studio, we want to help and make sure your dental needs are always taken care of.

1. Bedtime Brush

Always remember to brush your teeth before you head to bed. There’s no hiding the fact that you should clean your teeth twice a day. Many of us still don’t clean our teeth before bed. Plaque and bacteria build up throughout the day, but a good night’s brushing will remove it all.

2. Brush Properly

The technique you use when brushing is just as crucial; cleaning your teeth poorly is just as terrible as not brushing at all. Use a soft, circular motion with the toothbrush to help scrape away plaque. Plaque, if not eliminated, can harden and cause calculus to build up as well as gingivitis (early gum disease).

3. Your Tongue Is Just As Important

The tongue is another common site for the development of plaque. This can cause a number of issues with your mouth and teeth, including foul breath. When you clean your teeth, take a moment to gently scrub your tongue, too.

4. Fluoride Toothpaste

Whitening ability and flavoring aren’t the only things to consider while purchasing toothpaste. Make sure it has fluoride in it no matter which version you choose.

In spite of the fact that fluoride’s potential side effects have been debated, it is still widely used to keep teeth and gums healthy. This is due to the fact that fluoride is one of the best ways to protect teeth from decay. It prevents cavities by inhibiting the growth of bacteria and acting as a barrier to keep harmful substances away from your teeth.

5. Flossing = Brushing

It’s important to remember that flossing every day is just as crucial as brushing. Some people who clean their teeth frequently nonetheless don’t floss. Our dentist at Barrhaven Dental Studio clarifies that flossing has many other benefits besides removing bits of food or vegetables that may have become lodged between your teeth. It’s a great technique to decrease inflammation in the mouth, stimulate your gums, and clean your teeth.

These advantages may often be achieved by flossing once each day.

6. See Us At Least Twice A Year

Your daily routine directly affects your dental health. Yet, frequent visits to the dentist are recommended for everyone, even the most conscientious brushers and flossers. Twice yearly dental exams and cleanings are the very minimum that we recommend. We are trained to recognize possible problems and provide treatment options, in addition to removing calculus and checking for cavities.

Visit us at Barrhaven Dental Studio and we will do everything in our power to ensure that your teeth and gums remain in excellent condition.

Learn More About Regular Dental Checkups          Call Our Office

Tooth Extractions in Barrhaven

Tooth extractions can be painful, and it’s important to realize how to care for your extraction site afterward to promote healing. Knowing what to eat and what not to eat is a good place to start. 

Like any kind of dental procedure, you should stick to soft foods and liquids so as not to irritate the extraction site. Soft foods that are easy to consume should be eaten for the first 24 hours after your procedure. After 24 hours, you can ease into more of a normal diet, when you feel comfortable doing so. 

It’s important to try to stick with easy-to-chew foods for the first few days. Some examples include: 

• Yogurt
• Pudding
• Jell-O
• Ice cream
• Applesauce

After the first day, you can try a wider variety of foods:

• Mashed potatoes
• Mashed sweet potatoes
• Scrambled eggs
• Oatmeal
• Pancakes
• Broth-based soups

What Not To Eat

After having a tooth extracted, your body will need time to heal. You should avoid consuming alcoholic beverages for at least 24 hours following the surgery. If you are taking any powerful pain medications, you should avoid consuming alcohol until you are no longer on the medications. 

For about a week, it is advised to avoid eating hard, chewy, crunchy or brittle foods. These could include chips, nuts and popcorn. 

How To Eat

How you eat your food is equally as important as the types of foods you consume after an extraction. You should try to only chew on the opposite side of your mouth from the treated area. Since you’ll likely be consuming more liquids than solids following the procedure, it might be tempting to use a drinking straw. This is not advisable because the suction of the straw could dislodge the blood clot and lengthen your total healing time. 

Having a tooth extracted is a common procedure that many people will go through in their lifetime. Knowing how to care for your extraction site can speed up the recovery process. If you have any questions about tooth extractions, please call our office at 613-713-2900. 

To many people, a morning coffee or afternoon glass of wine is a ritual that cannot be disturbed or broken, but as there are many joys that come with those drinks there are still many enamel-straining prices. There are 3 different types of staining that can happen to your teeth and different causes. Learn more below. If you are unhappy with the color of your smile, Barrhaven Dental Studio in Barrhaven, ON can help!

Types of Stains:

Tooth discoloration can be caused by surface stains, material changes in your teeth, or a mix of the two. Tooth discoloration can be divided into three types, according to dentists:

• Extrinsic Teeth Stains: These stains are a type of discoloration that affects the outer layer of your teeth. Extrinsic stains are not as permanent as the other types, these stains will not respond to simply brushing your teeth. If there are cracks on the teeth they can become deep-set and begin to be harder to remove. 
• Intrinsic Teeth Stains: This type of stain will be found on the inner layer of your teeth or the dentin. Though dentin is beneath the tooth enamel, the darkened dentin can cause the whole tooth to appear discolored. 
• Age-Related Teeth Stains: Age-related teeth stains are a combination of both extrinsic and intrinsic discoloration. The core tissue of your teeth, the dentin, will naturally yellow over time causing your teeth to become discolored. Another factor that may cause your teeth to show discoloration is that the enamel of your teeth will become thinner allowing the dentin to show through. 

Causes of Enamel Stains

There can be many causes when it comes to teeth stains. Certain drinks and foods can cause there to be stains on your teeth, but there can be a biological factor as well. Many times there can be ways to prevent these stains from appearing on your teeth and many that you can not control. This list can help you determine what the cause was behind the stains on your teeth.

1. Food & Drink : Coffee, dark sodas, red wine and some fruits and vegetables can be so acidic that they cause staining.
2. Tobacco: Cigarettes and chewing tobacco can contribute to discoloration
3. Oral Care: Tooth discoloration can be caused by poor dental hygiene, such as insufficient brushing or flossing.
4. Trauma or Disease: Discolored teeth can result from any trauma, illness, or disease that impairs enamel formation in children, whether in the womb or while teeth are developing (under the age of 8). Adult teeth can sometimes become stained as a result of trauma. Discolored teeth can be caused by a number of disorders and therapies, chemotherapy and radiation, for example, cause tooth discoloration.
5. Medical Treatments: There are times when some medical treatments can contribute to your teeth staining as well as some medications. 

Ways to Help Clear Stains

There are a few remedies that can help lessen the impact of these causes. With help of some products, the coloration of your stains can become less apparent, but will not fully remove those stains. 

• Keeping a consistent healthy oral routine – brushing twice a day and daily flossing
• Twice-yearly visit to your dentist
• Limitation of teeth-staining beverages
• At home remedies – brushing with baking soda products
• Professional teeth whitening

If you are interested in getting your teeth back to pearly white, contact Barrhaven Dental Studio in Barrhaven, ON today for a professional teeth whitening session!