Reasons Why Good Oral Health is Important
The last decade has seen an increased interest in the connection between mouth health and overall body health. Nowadays physicians are using a holistic approach to care for their patients because of the realization that the health of the mouth does affect the entire body.
What is Oral Health?
There isn’t a standard definition of oral health, but there is a common understanding of what it is all about. It includes the ability of the entire oral structure to perform all functions effectively. This includes the abilities to speak, chew, taste, swallow and even execute facial expressions with confidence, and without pain or discomfort. It focuses on the overall state of your teeth, gums and mouth. Oral health begins shortly after being born and continues for as long as you live. It is the practices and habits established from that tender age that make up your oral health. Good practices result to good oral health while poor practices put you at risk of oral and oral-related complications.
If you are interested in understanding more about oral health, book an appointment with our dentist in Hillsborough, NJ for a more comprehensive approach.
Why is Oral Health Important?
Just by taking a look around a dentist’s office, the charts on the walls and the equipment tell you that oral care is a complex issue and vital nonetheless. Your mouth serves as the entry point to your digestive and respiratory tract. At the same time the mouth is consistently swarming with bacteria, which are mostly harmless, but can sometimes cause disease.
Ordinarily, your body’s natural defenses and good dental practices like brushing and flossing daily can keep the bacteria at bay. However, when you fail to implement proper dental hygiene, the bacteria levels can increase to a level that can cause infections such as tooth decay and gum disease. An infection like gum disease may seem to just affect the gums and teeth, but the bacteria causing it can get into the bloodstream, leading to more problems. Once in the bloodstream, the bacteria produces a protein that forces the blood to thicken, putting you at risk of blood clots. The result is the heart not getting enough oxygen, leading to a heart attack.
Other diseases associated with your oral health include pneumonia, caused when certain bacteria in the mouth gets pulled into the lungs. A link has also been established between periodontitis and premature births as well as low birth weight.
Having good oral health also means that you get to keep all your teeth for life and maintain a good appearance. Teeth loss associated with decay and gum disease is to a large extent preventable as long as you practice good oral health care habits. A study showed that the number of teeth one has strongly relates to how long they live. Additionally, teeth play a part in the appearance of your smile and consequently your confidence.
To minimize the risk of oral health complications, you can entrust your dental care in Hillsborough, NJ with us.
Oral Health Care Plan
You can get a tailored oral health plan from our dentist in Hillsborough. Some of the things it may include are:
- Understanding your dental needs. A dentist will have to examine your oral health to first understand the state it is at.
- Based on the findings, a plan will be developed that you may need to follow every day. In addition to brushing and flossing it will be determined if there is any medication or special care needed.
- Maintaining a healthy diet and staying hydrated at all times.
- Determining the frequency for your dental appointments. The recommended visits to the dentist is twice per year. However, depending on the condition of your oral health you may need to see a dentist more frequently.
- Familiarize with your mouth and teeth, and in case of unexplained changes, immediately consult with your dentist.
- Insist on getting holistic treatment rather than just treating the symptoms. Also, always insist on getting treatment from the appropriate physician. Does you case require a periodontist, orthodontist, hygienist or a maxillofacial surgeon.