Why You Should See a Dentist Every Six Months
Even if you don’t look forward to going to the dentist, regular dental visits are pretty important for your oral health and overall wellbeing. Here are five reasons why it’ll save you time and money to schedule checkups every six months.
Prevent Plaque, Tartar, and Cavities—and Unexpected Expenses
Unfortunately, even diligent flossing and brushing doesn’t completely clean every area of your mouth. In fact, there are certain areas that get missed regularly, and plaque and tartar that build up there can get harder and harder to get rid of. But a professional cleaning will catch and clean every area before it becomes a problem.
Cavities are hard to notice yourself. Once you start to feel the pain of one, it has already formed, and you’ll need a filling, which is more expensive and inconvenient than getting regular cleanings. If you’re worried about the expense of cleanings, at least that expense is predictable, whereas fillings and extractions are large, unexpected bills, which you won’t want.
Using X-Rays to Catch Hidden Problems
Problems that x-rays catch often don’t manifest until it’s too late. Without getting an x-ray, impacted teeth, bone decay, tumors, cysts, and jawbone damage can remain hidden from sight. Because these conditions can attack suddenly, regular check-ups and x-rays are extremely important to catch them.
Catching Gum Disease
Gum disease happens when plaque and tartar move beyond the teeth and attack the gum tissue, infecting the place where the gum is attached to the tooth. This makes the gum start to detach and break down, which leads to soreness, bleeding, or swelling and can cause bone decay and loosening of the teeth. The only solution then is to go to a specialist and get special cleaning, medication, and surgery. But regular cleanings can catch and prevent all this.
Stop Bad Habits by Getting Good Feedback
You might not realize some of your seemingly harmless habits are damaging your oral health, such as smoking, drinking coffee, or clenching your jaw. In an exam, your dentist will notice any unusual damage and give you strategies for preventing more damage.
Detecting Oral Cancer
Oral cancer can only be diagnosed by a medical doctor, but dentists are trained to notice the signs of it, so regular checkups will vastly increase your chances of catching it early. And that part of the exam only takes a minute or two.
If you’re checking out different dentists in Salt Lake City, schedule an appointment today with South Temple Dental.
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