Bad dental habits like biting your nails and chewing ice cubes are a threat to your oral health because they can weaken teeth over time. Since our teeth cannot self-heal, it’s important to prevent potential damage to them whenever possible. In addition to keeping regular appointments with your dentist and practicing thorough oral hygiene, you should avoid the following bad dental habits.
Open Packaging with Teeth
Do you use your teeth to tear plastic packaging or to open bottles? This destructive habit could cause chipped and cracked teeth. Keeping scissors and bottle openers throughout your home and in your workspace can help you fight the urge to misuse your teeth.
Brush Too Vigorously
While some elbow grease will shine up the surfaces of your home, it will not improve the cleanliness of your teeth. In fact, brushing too vigorously will wear down your tooth enamel and increase your risks for dental injuries and tooth decay.
Instead of a using a heavy hand, use a soft-bristled toothbrush and brush in gentle, circular motions.
Chew Inedible Objects
Many people chew ice cubes and pen caps to quell nervousness. Exposing your teeth to hard, inedible surfaces on a regular basis will weaken them. Over time, this could land you in our office for an emergency dental appointment.
Instead of chewing ice cubes and pen caps, we recommend chewing sugar-free gum.
Forget to Floss
Do you forget to floss? Perhaps you think brushing your teeth is sufficient. When we forego flossing, we miss about 30% of the surface area of our mouths. Flossing is an essential part of oral hygiene. Our practice strongly encourages patients to floss once per day.
Use Homeopathic Remedies Without Talking to Your Dentist First
If you’re on social media, you’ve probably seen articles touting homeopathic remedies for oral health. While some of these remedies are benign and potentially helpful, most are not. Some examples of harmful “remedies” include drinking apple cider vinegar and brushing with charcoal-based toothpaste. Both of these actions can destroy the enamel surface of your teeth.
Before you try home remedies or implement oral health tips from the Internet, speak with our dentist.
Call Fresh Leaf Dental today to schedule an appointment.
