Hygiene Habits
Your Mouth is the Gateway to a Healthy Body
By Amy Morgan
A new year inspires many to evaluate their health habits with fresh eyes. You may first consider diet and exercise, but don’t neglect your oral health. “The mouth is the gateway to the body,” says Shay Green, Lead Dental Hygienist at 7to7 Dental & Orthodontics’ Cibolo location. She noted that an infection in your mouth will circulate throughout your body and bloodstream and can exacerbate a variety of other problems including diabetes and heart disease – even prevent someone from having a much-needed surgery or a transplant.
Staying current with regular cleanings and dental exams every six months not only will keep your smile bright but can prevent conditions like gingivitis and periodontal disease, which can eventually lead to bone loss. Shay considers the bones of your jaw your smile’s foundation. “You can build the most beautiful house, but if you don’t have a strong foundation, it will crumble.” The same is true for your mouth. You can have shiny white teeth, but if you don’t have stable bone support, you are in danger of losing them.
During a regular dental check your hygienist will first take a general health assessment and ask about daily medications. There are close to 500 drugs that can contribute to dry mouth or puffy gums, Shay said. Your dentist can offer some suggestions like a special mouthwash or water flosser to ameliorate those problems if she notices their occurrence.
Next, your hygienist will take X-rays, which will reveal cavities, bone loss, or sub-gingival tartar hiding under the gums. Then she’ll make a visual assessment of the mouth – paying special attention to any abnormalities like inflamed lymph nodes or detectable cancerous lesions.
Have you ever wondered what your hygienist was doing when you heard her reciting a string of numbers as she examined your teeth? She’s measuring your tissue to document the health of your gums. Higher numbers indicate deep pockets, which might require a more intense clean. As long as your numbers remain low, she can proceed to clean plaque, biofilm and tartar from your teeth. Plaque, caused by bacteria, is a soft white substance that causes cavities, bleeding and puffiness if it sits on the gums. The good news is that it can be removed fairly easily with a toothbrush. Once plaque calcifies, it becomes tartar that requires a professional to remove. Your hygienist will use a tool with a Cavitron tip that vibrates and squirts water at and just under the gumline. Stubborn bits of tartar may require the hygienist to use a hand scaler to ensure nothing is left behind. Lastly, she’ll floss and polish to make teeth shiny and bright.
As an added incentive to promptly schedule biannual visits, 7to7 Dental provides a complimentary tube of whitening gel to patients following their cleaning.
It’s also important to continue good hygiene habits at home. Shay recommends brushing twice a day for two minutes. If you use a manual toothbrush, make circular motions, overlapping each circle, she said. If you use an electric toothbrush, position it half on the tooth, half below, and glide along the gumline. She also reminds patients to floss before bed, a cavity-prevention practice that allows teeth to rest for six to eight hours with no bacteria on or between them.
When asked about her favorite part of her job, Shay said while she “loves to see a nice healthy mouth and have great conversations with her patients,” she also enjoys meeting new patients who haven’t seen a dentist in a long time and are really worried. They might not know why their gums are puffy or bleeding. “Three months down the road, they are like a different person,” she said. “It feels very rewarding to see a patient come such a long way.”
“We’re always welcoming new patients,” Shay added. “I try to make every patient feel great about themselves and enjoy coming in to the office.” She appreciates that 7to7 Dental is open from 7 a.m.- 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. -5 p.m., weekends for dentistry for the whole family and emergencies. “We are here to serve our community!”
