Caring for Your Smile Between Dental Visits

Your daily habits play an important role in maintaining a healthy smile between dental visits. Explore simple ways to protect your teeth and gums and make the most of your professional dental care.

Build a Simple Daily Routine

Brushing twice a day with a soft-bristle toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste, and flossing once a day, are still the two most effective habits for keeping plaque and tartar from building up between visits. Try to brush for a full two minutes, and pay close attention to the gumline and the back teeth, which are easy to rush past.

Flossing reaches the tight spaces between teeth that a toothbrush cannot, where food particles and plaque tend to collect. If traditional floss is difficult to use, interdental brushes or floss picks can make the habit easier to keep up daily.

Watch What — and How Often — You Snack

Frequent snacking, especially on sticky or sugary foods, gives the bacteria in your mouth more opportunities to produce the acid that leads to cavities. Drinking water after sugary or acidic drinks, and limiting snacking between meals, can help protect your enamel between cleanings.

Watch for Changes

Sensitivity to hot or cold, bleeding gums, a new rough spot on a tooth, or persistent bad breath are all worth paying attention to. These changes do not always mean something serious is wrong, but they are easier to address the earlier they are caught.

Know When to Call the Office

If you notice a change that concerns you, or it has been longer than six months since your last cleaning and exam, it is a good time to schedule a visit. Regular checkups give your dental team the chance to catch small issues before they become bigger ones.

Make the Most of Your Professional Visits

Come prepared to ask questions about anything you have noticed since your last visit, including sensitivity, changes in your bite, or habits like teeth grinding. The more your dental team knows about your day-to-day experience, the more tailored your care can be.