Oral Health Quotes

I do not endorse drinking fluoride. I encourage everyone to spit several times after using any dental products to ensure good clearance from the mouth; do not eat, drink, or wash your mouth for at least an hour, so that your teeth can derive the maximum benefit from fluoride rinsing. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Almost everyone’s saliva pH becomes more acidic at night, or when we are tired or unwell. Mouth pH can be tested with special litmus paper or a pH meter dipped into saliva that is collected in a spoon or small dish. Your morning saliva can be used as a baseline reading, but remember, saliva pH fluctuates easily with stress, travel, extra hours of work, or mouth breathing. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Baking soda is a handy cleaning product, because it is not abrasive and is excellent for dissolving grease and removing molds. In the mouth, however, this ability to dissolve fats and grease appears to damage the beneficial proteins that are the foundation of healthy biofilm that covers teeth and stops sensitivity, enamel erosion, and gum recession—particularly for mouths that are acidic or dry. Baking soda appears to strip this protective protein layer away in some mouths, which leaves teeth and gums more vulnerable to mechanical, thermal, and chemical assault. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

The suggestion to brush your teeth immediately after a meal may sound logical to some people, but not if you understand that your mouth is almost always acidic after a meal. It can take about an hour for this acidity to dissipate. This is why some dentists tell their patients to wait an hour before brushing. If you brush acid- softened enamel, it will easily be abraded or worn. In my opinion, the best solution is to use xylitol at the end of meals. If xylitol is not available, an option would be to have a tooth-protective food like whole milk or cheese or to rinse the mouth with water to wash away the acidity. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Buy some new toothbrushes, and ensure they are not too soft. You’ll want to concentrate on reaching all the areas of your gums: even higher above, on the inside areas, and below your teeth in the areas of the teeth’s roots. Brushing techniques that target teeth and do not reach your gums will leave plaque at the gum margins in an infected mouth. In some cases, a battery-operated brush can be useful, since the vibrations help to stimulate circulation when dexterity or access to the mouth is difficult. In other situations, when the vibrations are not tolerable, cleaning the gums with a manual brush or even a sponge or cloth may be your best option. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

With the exception of electric toothbrushes, many brush heads are too big and difficult to maneuver around your mouth. For some of my clients, I suggest a brush designed for teens or young adults. Basically, you want a brush that fits your mouth. And brushes with small heads are generally easier, especially if you have crowded teeth. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Flossing cannot help you improve your mouth ecology, and there is risk that flossing and cleanings could push bacteria into the blood from your infected mouth. If you have a problem with food being stuck between your teeth, this will gradually resolve as your mouth becomes healthier; in the meantime, small interdental brushes may be useful for extra plaque control in problem areas. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

A rinse like chlorine dioxide is very useful, because it will create oxygen in the small spaces where periodontal bacteria live. Many rinses today are acidic, with a pH low enough to damage root cement and even tooth enamel. The only acidic rinse that is safe for teeth is one containing dilute sodium fluoride, since the benefits of the fluoride are enhanced in a slightly acidic solution. Acidic rinses are particularly damaging in a dry mouth. I believe everyone should check products they use regularly, possibly using an inexpensive pH-testing meter. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Swish the bristles of the brush daily, preferably in a drop of an undiluted essential oil antibacterial rinse, like Listerine, for a couple of seconds. Rinse the brush under running water and then store it—bristles up, in a cup or holder—so it can air-dry completely for twenty-four hours between uses. Remember that bacteria lodged inside biofilm will die when they dry. This means that in order to brush twice a day you will need, at a minimum, two brushes. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

A toothpaste’s ideal ingredients would be nonabrasive silica, enough sodium fluoride to strengthen teeth, and no glycerin. In the late 1950s, the original Crest formulation passed randomized clinical trials and showed it could stop cavities before they start. It has been my toothpaste of choice for three decades. If you have gum recession, be sure to avoid any toothpaste that contains glycerin, salt, peroxide, coconut oil, or baking soda, since these can upset biofilm health by dissolving its foundational proteins. If you have a dry mouth or sensitivity, my advice is to avoid all the pastes advertised for sensitive teeth. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Schedule a dental appointment as early in the day and week as possible, ideally after a long weekend when the office air will have settled. Avoid Friday afternoon when office air may be fogged with bacteria. Boost your immune system with a healthy diet and probiotics for several weeks before an appointment. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

A company called Oral DNA has a test called MyPerioPath®, which measures the levels of periodontal bacteria in your saliva. This can alert you if harmful periodontal pathogens are at an unhealthy level, indicating the probability that they are breeding in gum pockets around your teeth. I suggest everyone takes a salivary mouth test for periodontal pathogens along with an oral cancer screening, at least every couple of years. If you have active gum disease, I believe you should consider testing immediately and then monitor your oral health until it is satisfactory and remains stable. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

With healthy gums and pristine teeth, the need for X-rays to check deeper should be adequate at three- to five-year intervals. When all the crevices of molar teeth have been filled by sealants or covered with fillings or dental crowns, this prevents the dentist from being able to visually judge the health of your mouth, as the molar grooves have been eliminated. As a general rule of thumb, pristine teeth will need the fewest X-rays, and this is one reason I strongly oppose the use of sealants, as they increase the need for frequent X-ray assessment for the rest of your life. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Those who have titanium dental implants should be wary of cleanings. With titanium in your jaw, you should be extremely judicious about the frequency of professional cleanings you receive. This is because there is a substantial risk that particles of metal can be scraped off your implant and get into your gum tissue, which could create a new health hazard. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

A few drops of mouth rinse will work just as well as a large mouthful. Most mouth rinse manufacturers encourage you to use as much as possible, but I have found no science to connect the mouth benefits with the volume of rinse used. With any mouth rinse, feel free to be economical with your rinse volume. Maximize the benefits of your final protective rinse by not eating or drinking for at least an hour after you finish the routine, and spit out the last rinse. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

I believe flossing in an infected mouth can be a health problem, and unnecessary flossing or overflossing can easily make teeth sensitive, cause gums to recede, and put people at risk for pushing plaque bacteria into the blood, with the potential to contribute to plaque in arteries or worse. If you have a healthy mouth and like to floss, I believe the best time to floss is when you have toothpaste on your teeth, so a small amount of paste will be pulled and pushed between the interproximal areas between teeth. This way of using floss to move toothpaste could also be useful if you are trying to heal interproximal cavities between your teeth, since it will ensure the toothpaste has access to help mineralize these areas on your teeth. [2018] - Ellie Phillips

Start exercising your jaw to develop the muscles of mastication (chewing) that strengthen your jawbone and provide the architecture for your airways. Since you can't take your jaw to the gym, the best way to strengthen it is to eat raw tough foods like carrots and celery with every meal. They'll keep your jaw joints strong and healthy. [2018] - Steven Lin

Make sure to rinse your mouth with water after consumption of any sour food or beverage to prevent the natural acids from dissolving your enamel. Do NOT brush your teeth within an hour after eating or drinking something sour, as your enamel may be in a softened state and be further damaged by brushing. [2015] - Michael Greger

If you want to buy an electric toothbrush, purchase one that has a round head so that you can reach the challenging areas behind the back and front teeth. Always use a soft-headed toothbrush. [2013] - Nadine Artemis

It's better to use a dry toothbrush than a wet one. Gently stoking your teeth with a dry tooth brush and rinsing thoroughly will remove more bacteria and plaque than using a wet brush with regular toothpaste. It's less than ideal to brush your teeth right after a meal. If you brush too soon after eating, the saliva will not have time to recalibrate to its slightly alkaline level of pH 7. You can rinse with salt water to neutralize the saliva again, and floss if desired. [2013] - Nadine Artemis