Dental hygiene is so much more than just brushing your teeth, and it is so much more crucial for your overall health and wellbeing than many people know. At Jaffe Orthodontics, Dr. Jordan Jaffe and his team believe in boosting oral health from all angles, whether that means correcting the bite with braces, building good habits at home, or all of the above, in order to change the lives of our patients in Bristol, RI. Here are 5 ways that poor oral hygiene can impact your life.

Detrimental To Health

The mouth is a kind of picture of the body’s overall health, meaning sometimes it reflects problems happening elsewhere in the body, and sometimes it causes them. For example, the growth of unhealthy bacteria in the mouth can affect the lungs, stomach, and intestines. Add this to the list of reasons to prevent cavities by brushing and flossing.

Contributes to Gum Disease and Tooth Loss

Many people suffer from periodontitis, or gum disease, which causes painful inflammation and destroys gum tissue, sometimes leading to tooth loss. The main cause of gum disease is poor brushing and flossing habits, which allow plaque to build up and harden on the teeth.

Affects Your Appearance

The oral health problems that result from poor hygiene are not only harmful, they’re also unsightly. Teeth can become discolored, rot, fall out, or become otherwise disfigured by plaque buildup and cavities. Severe bite problems can also affect confidence, disrupting facial harmony, and should be resolved with orthodontic treatment.

Can Be Very Painful

When teeth are diseased or damaged by bacterial overgrowth, you may not initially feel pain, but once the cavities reach the nerves in the center of the tooth the pain can be excruciating. It is important to treat and prevent cavities before they reach this point and require surgery.

Causes Expensive Complications

The more your teeth are compromised by issues resulting from poor hygiene, the more expensive it will be to treat these issues and regain your health down the road. Prevention saves a lot of money in the long run, as well as time and energy.

Make an Appointment With Your Orthodontist

Regain control of your oral health through orthodontic treatment. Jaffe Orthodontics is equipped to provide our patients with the treatments and orthodontic solutions they need to achieve beautiful and healthy smiles. Contact us today and request an appointment, or visit us at our Barrington or Portsmouth locations.

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