Crescent Lodge Dental Practice – Advantages of using mouthwash

Has your dentist advised you in the past to use mouthwash and maintain good dental hygiene, but you never really got round to it? Perhaps you bought a bottle after your appointment with good intentions, used it a couple of times, then forgot why it was important? If this sounds familiar, please be assured that you are not alone. A National Smile Month survey discovered that only 31% of adults in the UK use mouthwash regularly. So, why is it important?

Using mouthwash is not a substitute for brushing your teeth regularly, but it can help protect your teeth against more serious dental problems in the future and help with your dental hygiene, when used in addition to twice daily brushing. This is why the dental hygiene experts at our South West London practice recommend that you take the benefits of using mouthwash seriously. Let’s have a look at the main things mouthwash can do for you:

– Mouthwash kills bacteria in your mouth that causes bad breath, providing you with fresher breath and ultimately making you more kissable. If you don’t want to be the person, whom others turn away from, when you’re speaking, mouthwash can make all the difference.

– Mouthwash can ease sores in the mouth.

– Mouthwash can help protect your teeth. Brushing your teeth with toothpaste will get rid of any food deposits that are left on your teeth. Using mouthwash will get rid of even more of them. It is not advised to use mouthwash after brushing as this can flush away the fluoride in your toothpaste that you need to keep your teeth healthy. You can, however, use it during the day or before brushing.

Mouthwash can aid in dental hygiene to protect you from gum disease.

It’s important to get rid of food deposits as thoroughly as you can, because whatever you don’t manage to shift, will contribute to plaque forming and potentially lead to tooth decay. If your plaque is not removed, it can turn into tartar, which is a major cause of gum disease.

These might simply sound like a lot of technical dental terms, but tooth decay will be painful and create the need for a filling to treat the painful cavity. Gum disease involves your gums swelling, bleeding and being uncomfortable. If you then don’t treat gum disease, your risk of getting diabetes, having heart disease, or giving birth to a low-birthweigh baby will be significantly higher.

We’re not saying all these serious conditions could have been avoided by regular use of mouthwash, we’re saying numerous studies show that using mouthwash can significantly reduce your chances of experiencing any of these serious conditions.

The best way to ensure you’re doing everything you can to avoid tooth decay and gum disease is to book an appointment with the experienced hygienist to help improve your dental hygiene, here at our South West London dental practice. Or, if you are already in tooth pain, you might prefer to visit one of our dental surgeons. In either case, please give our friendly and professional team a call. If you explain your symptoms or concerns, they will be able to advise you of your best course of action. Please get in touch.

Contact Our Dentists in Clapham Today!