How To Prevent Cavities & Tooth Decay - 5 Simple Steps

If you want to keep your teeth healthy and strong, you need to take the proper steps to prevent cavities and tooth decay. Tooth decay is, by far, the most common preventable oral disease in patients of all ages. In this blog, the team at Dulles Life Smiles will discuss a few simple steps you can take to keep your mouth healthy.

‍

1. Brush Your Teeth Twice A Day For Two Minutes

This is the most important step for preventing cavities and tooth decay. Make sure you brush at least twice a day for two minutes using fluoride toothpaste. Brush your teeth thoroughly, and ensure you clean the fronts, tops, and backs of your teeth to remove food debris, bacteria, and plaque.

Ideally, you should brush once in the morning and once at night. If you want to further protect your oral health, you can also brush once after lunch.
‍

2. Floss Once A Day & Use Antiseptic Mouthwash‍

Flossing doesn’t just help prevent gum disease, but can also help with tooth decay. Food particles lodged between your teeth and gums can help bacteria flourish and cause cavities, so cleaning between your teeth is essential.
‍

Beyond flossing once per day, it can be helpful to use an antiseptic mouthwash. We recommend rinsing after flossing to remove any remaining food particles, kill bacteria, and freshen your breath.

3. Maintain A Healthy Diet

A diet that’s good for your body is good for your teeth. Try to avoid eating overly-processed food, and eat a diet that’s high in complex carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables, lean meats, and healthy dairy products like yogurt. Minimize starchy snacks like chips and pretzels, and sweets like candy and desserts. The bacteria that cause tooth decay thrive on simple starches and sugar.

4. Ditch Sugary Beverages‍

You should avoid drinking too much soda, fruit juice, and sweetened tea and coffee, as well as sugary cocktails and other alcoholic drinks. Sugar-filled drinks will coat your entire mouth with the sugar that oral bacteria need to reproduce, and increase your risk of cavities significantly. Do your best to limit your intake of these sugar-filled beverages.

5. Get Six-Month Cleanings & Oral Exams‍

Six-month cleanings and oral exams from the team at Dulles Life Smiles are the best way to catch potential cavities early, before they become serious enough to need a filling or a crown. With routine cleanings from Dr. Gino and our team, you can get peace of mind, and know that your smile is in great shape.

Make Sure Your Smile Is Healthy With Preventive Care At Our Office!

Beyond teeth cleanings and oral exams, Dr. Gino and the team at Dulles Life Smiles can provide preventive dentistry treatments like dental sealants and fluoride treatments to protect cavity-prone teeth. So if you’re worried about tooth decay in Ashburn, don’t wait. Contact us online to get the help you need, or give us a call at 703-783-2425 to schedule a consultation at our office right away.