Why Regular Dental Visits are Important

Have you ever wondered where dentists recommend at least two yearly dental visits, even if you care for your gums and teeth at home?

Your skilled Encino dentist is not only concerned with treating oral health conditions. The professional will professionally clean the teeth to ensure your gums and teeth are healthy and look for abnormalities that can go unnoticed and result in painful health challenges. The professional can also ensure your bones are strong and help you avoid habits that could jeopardize your oral health. While skipping your dental appointment might not seem like a big deal, diseases can develop quickly. When you keep up with your visits, you are doing yourself a favor now and in the future. Please continue reading this informative article to learn the importance of regular dental appointments.

Early Oral Cancer Detection

Regular dental visits are your first defense against severe dental health conditions like oral cancer.

Oral cancer includes cancers of the tongue, floor of the mouth, soft and hard palate, throat, cheek, and lips. Its symptoms include the following:

• A sore or growth that does not go away.
• Numbness, tenderness, or pain in your neck, mouth, or face.
• Bleeding in the mouth.
• Red or velvet-white patches in the mouth.
• Excessive bleeding in the mouth.

Many dental practices examine the mouth during a dental appointment to screen for oral cancer. The examination involves the dentist looking for signs of precancerous or cancerous conditions in the mouth. It can also include an extra-oral review of the neck and head and an inter-oral exam of your gum tissues, tongue, lips, and cheeks. The screening aims to detect precancerous lesions or mouth cancer early when the lesions or cancer are easy to remove and likely to be cured.

You are more likely to benefit from the screening if you are at high risk of oral cancer. Factors that increase the risk of oral cancer development include the following:

• Smoking and using tobacco.
• Heavy alcohol use.
• Significant sun exposure.
• Prior oral cancer diagnosis.

During the examination, your dentist will look for sores, irregular tissue changes like discoloration, and lumps. They can refer you to an oral surgeon or recommend a biopsy if they find anything suspicious.

You Will Enjoy the Benefits of Dental Cleanings

You should brush your teeth at least twice a day. However, did you know that a dentist should clean your teeth at least twice a year? Regular cleanings and checkups are vital for maintaining good oral and overall health. It offers the following benefits:

• Removing tartar and plaque — Plaque is a sticky film of bacteria that forms on teeth. If left untreated, it can harden into tartar, resulting in gum disease.
• Prevents cavities — Bacteria in the plaque produce acids that eat away the tooth enamel, causing cavities. Regular cleaning helps remove the plaque.
• Fresh breath —Tartar and plaque can cause bad breath. By removing them, a professional dental cleaning helps you have a fresh breath.
• Reduces the risk of heart attacks and strokes — According to a Taiwan study presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2011, among 100,000 subjects who underwent professional tooth scaling had a 24% lower risk of suffering from a heart attack and 13% lower risk of stroke compared to the control group.

What to Expect During Your Dental Cleaning

Typically, dental cleaning involves polishing and scaling your teeth. Depending on your oral health condition and needs, your hygienist can recommend other preventive and diagnostic treatments like sealants and fillings.

1. Dental Scaling

During dental scaling, your doctor will use a hand instrument (a scaler) to remove tartar and plaque from tooth surfaces. They can sometimes use ultrasonic scalers to vibrate and spray jets of water. You will hear scraping noises during this step, but it is unpainful.

2. Dental Polishing

Your hygienist will polish the teeth with pumice (a special paste) and a rubber cup. It removes the biofilm on the teeth's surfaces and lowers plaque buildup on the enamel.

Prevention of Gum Disease

Also called periodontal disease, gum disease is the infection and inflammation of tissues surrounding your teeth.

Dental plaque is the primary cause of gum disease. Plaque has many types of bacteria that can infect the gums. Poor oral hygiene makes you more likely to develop periodontal disease. Sometimes, genes are a risk factor by changing how your immune system responds to bacteria.

Healthy gums are firm and neither swell or bleed. However, gum disease can cause them to swell, discolor, and bleed. If left untreated, the condition can affect the underlying jawbone, resulting in tooth loss.

Tissue breakdown around the teeth occurs gradually, and most patients do not experience pain, mainly during the initial stages. Therefore, it is wise to understand the following warning signs:

• Gingivitis (the initial stage)— It starts with puffy, red gums that bleed when flossing or brushing.
• Mild periodontitis — Bacteria have entered beneath the gums and affected your supporting bone. The gums can pull away from the teeth, creating pockets around them where bacteria and plaque can hide.
• Moderate periodontitis — If left untreated, bacteria erode the bone, soft tissues, and ligaments holding your teeth. You can experience pain, pus around the gum line, and bad breath.
• Advanced periodontitis — At this phase, bone loss progresses, which can cause the tooth to loosen and finally fall out.

You can reverse the situation with regular dental visits, brushing, and daily flossing if you suffer from gingivitis. It is because you have not lost any bones yet. This approach eliminates harmful bacteria before gum disease progresses. 

With root planing and scaling, your dentist will clean deeper beneath the gums, where your floss and toothbrush cannot reach, eliminating bacteria and plaque. The hygienist will also smoothen the tooth root surfaces to stop bacteria from reattaching. Dentists recommend this treatment for patients with mild periodontitis.

Curtailing Harmful Oral Habits

Bad habits can increase the likelihood of developing oral health-related challenges like gum disease and tooth decay. Seeing your dentist can help you stop. Your knowledgeable Encino dentist should discuss lifestyle habits that could impact your oral health and recommend practical ways to curtail the practices. They include the following:

• Using your teeth as tools — Using the teeth to perform a task they are not designed for, like opening a bottle, can injure your jaw or cause tooth cracking. Always carry real tools, like scissors and bottle openers, to avoid being tempted to use your teeth.
• Biting your nails — Nail biting is a nervous habit that can injure your jaw, chip teeth, and expose the mouth to the bacteria beneath the nails. Your dentist can recommend applying bitter nail polish or practicing stress management techniques like exercise to stop this habit.
• Chewing ice cubes — The ice’s cold temperature and rigidity can cause the teeth to crack and damage your dental restorations. Instead, consider drinking chilled drinks or using a straw.
• Teeth grinding — Typically, bruxism happens while asleep and is caused by anxiety or stress. It can wear down the teeth, exposing them to decay. Your dentist can recommend practicing stress-management exercises and using a mouth guard.
• Brushing aggressively — Bruising too hard can erode enamel, cause tooth sensitivity, and irritate your gums, causing them to recede. Instead, brush for at most two minutes using a soft-bristled toothbrush.
• Drinking and eating sugary drinks and foods — Sugary substances like sodas, candies, snacks, or sports drinks have acids that erode tooth enamel, making you more vulnerable to tooth decay. The dental care practice is avoiding sugary beverages and foods. Nevertheless, if you decide to indulge, ensure you eat or drink them with meals so that the saliva produced during mealtime washes away the sugars. Also, rinse the mouth using water after meals to prevent sugars from sticking around the mouth.
• Avoid smoking and use tobacco products — Tobacco can cause gum disease and stain teeth. They can also lead to cancer. To save your oral health, your doctor can develop a plan to quit using tobacco.

Your Pediatric Dentist Will Advise on How to Take Care of Your Child's Oral Health

Education and prevention are the keys to a life of beautiful, healthy smiles, gums, and teeth. The earlier your child starts regular dental visits, the better they can smile confidently, chew food easily, and learn to talk fluently. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends scheduling a dental visit immediately after your child’s first tooth appears.

Some advantages of regular pediatric dental visits include the following:

• Alleviate anxiety and create familiarity with dental care— Minor children should feel safe and comfortable in their environment, mainly in new spaces. Starting dental visits early assists juveniles in familiarizing themselves with dental offices, smells, and sounds. Most established dentists are devoted to making every child’s initial dentist visit fun and memorable.
• Developing healthy oral health habits — During the visits, your dentist can teach your child how to brush appropriately, floss, and prevent cavities. When learned early, proper habits become a lifestyle.
• Preventing dental issues — Babies’ teeth are more vulnerable to cavities and gum disease. Regular dental visits can help the dentist detect developing dental issues early. It reduces the cost and degree of orthodontic treatments later. During the visit, your dentist can evaluate your child’s loose teeth, gums, bite habits, speech, tongue, fluoride use, diet, home care, and general health history. The dentist can also recommend preventative techniques like sealants.
• Parental education and support — The most crucial part of your child’s oral health care is what occurs daily at home. Your dentist can give you tips on daily flossing, brushing, nutrition, and the steps to take during emergencies. Additionally, the doctor can help you handle issues like teeth grinding, teething, and thumb sucking.

Improves Your General Health

Making regular dental visits also improves your overall health. Your mouth is the entry point to your respiratory and digestive systems. Your body’s natural defenses, proper oral hygiene practices, and regular dental visits keep bacteria at bay.

You can prevent the development of the following conditions linked to poor oral health by visiting your dentist regularly:

• Endocarditis is an infection of the inner lining of the heart valves or chamber. It happens when bacteria from another body part spreads via the bloodstream and attaches to your heart.
• Pneumonia.
• Birth and pregnancy complications.
• Cardiovascular diseases.
• Sjogren’s syndrome (an immune system condition that causes dry mouth).
• Specific cancers.
• Rheumatoid arthritis.
• Eating disorders.

Regular professional dental cleaning gives you an attractive and healthy shade of white that boosts your appearance, smile, and confidence. You do not have to hesitate to open your mouth, laugh, smile, or eat in public after the cleaning freshens up the mouth’s feel and look.

Diagnostic Imaging

During your regular dental appointments, your dentist will use dental imaging techniques.

Dentists recognize there is more to your teeth than they can see with their naked eyes. That is why they use dental X-rays to look past your mouth tissues like gums, jawbones, and inside teeth.

The physician can use digital or film sensors to measure the absorptions and convert them into an image. The images allow the doctor to diagnose the dental issue early and recommend techniques to prevent future severe oral health diseases. Detailed imagery allows for improved planning and targeted treatments.

Dental X-rays can show:

• Tiny areas of decay between your teeth.
• Cysts.
• Bone loss due to gum disease.
• Decay beneath your restorations like fillings.
• Your teeth’s position to determine the required types of implants, dentures, or braces.

Regarding children, diagnostic imaging is crucial to closely track jaw growth and development and the progress of adult teeth.

Find a Reliable and Compassionate Dentist Near Me

Like most patients, going to the dentist regularly is the last thing you want to do due to discomfort. However, procrastination can result in severe oral health conditions. During your appointment, the qualified dentists at Lasting Impressions Dental Spa can examine your mouth, gums, and tongue for tumors, inflammation, swollen glands, and growths. We can conduct dental cleaning to remove tartar and plaque, prevent tooth decay, and offer patient education. We can also check your previous dental work and use X-rays to detect developing dental issues.

Please call us at 818-751-5100 to schedule your dental appointment. Our Encino team is dedicated to helping you achieve your dream smile and keeping you happy, confident, beautiful, and healthy.