Why You Should Visit the Dentist Regularly?

Just like your physical and mental health, your oral health needs to be taken care of regularly too and not just when you face a tangible problem. Visiting a dentist periodically helps maintain your oral health, and keeps your pearly whites in top condition. In fact, regular dental visits are just as important as eating healthily and exercising often for your overall health.

Reasons to Visit The Dentist

There are a lot of situations in which you could find yourself in your dentist’s office, whether it be for improving dental health or even cosmetic reasons like getting dentures or veneers. Some of the most common reasons to see a dentist include:

• Tooth decay and extractions
• Gum disease
• Broken or chipped tooth
• Bad breath
• Sensitive teeth

While all the situations listed above are important reasons to see a dentist, the most important reason is often overlooked: getting a general check-up.
Regular dental visits for general check-ups can go a long way to preventing the situations listed earlier. Dentists will clean your teeth, check for any teething issues (pun intended), advise you about better oral care and even make recommendations for dental procedures you may need to get.

What Does a General Check-Up Entail?

A regular dental visit helps maintain and improve your oral health, and that’s where general check-ups are so important. You may be doing the basics right by brushing twice a day and flossing, but getting a check-up from a professional will help take your smile to the next level. General check-ups and cleaning help eliminate the bacterial plaque build-up on your teeth.

During a general check-up, you can expect your dentist or dental hygienist to:
Check the current condition of your gums, teeth and jawbone, and make any initial assessments or evaluations.

Remove bacteria, plaque and calculus that cause gum disease through professional scaling.
Comprehensively clean and polish your teeth to remove stains and discolouration.
General check-ups are just as important as the basic oral care you do at home, and the two complement each other in maintaining and even improving your dental health.

How Often Should I Visit the Dentist?

The importance of regularly seeing a dentist cannot be stressed enough, but how often does ‘regular’ imply? The general rule of thumb is twice a year — once every 6 months. This will ensure that not only do you see the benefits of regular check-ups and cleans, but it will also help you avoid any potentially problematic dental concerns in the future. Note that this applies just for preventative dental care and not for unforeseen circumstances like broken teeth. In that case, a booking must be made as soon as possible to treat the issue.

How often you must visit a dentist also depends on how diligent you are with your oral hygiene, your diet and habits, and any medical conditions, among other factors too. While seeing a dentist once every 6 months is the bare minimum one can do, some people may find it helpful to see their dentist more regularly, like every 3 months. At your next check-up, you can ask your dentist what they recommend for your unique situation.

Benefits of Regular Dental Check-Ups

The benefits of regular dental check-ups are plentiful and are key to improving your overall dental health. For starters, check-ups help identify any underlying oral issues before they can progress too far, or even just prevent them from happening in the first place. For instance, issues like tooth decay and gum disease are fairly commonplace, and they can even lead to loss of teeth in some cases. However, going for regular check-ups helps mitigate a lot of that risk.

Therefore, regular dental check-ups also help you save money in the long run, since you can minimise the likelihood of needing extensive dental work done. You may also be able to claim back the majority of your check-up bill through your insurance or government rebates.
Your oral health is also key to your overall health, so ensuring you are up to scratch with it is all the more important to ensure a better quality of life. For instance, infections that can result from poor oral care can travel elsewhere in your body, including your heart. And besides, who doesn’t like the confidence that comes with a beautiful and confident smile?

Book an Appointment for Your Next Dental Check-Up

If you are in and around Berwick, you don’t need to Google ‘dentist near me’, for the answer to your query. At Langmore Dental, we have the solutions for all your dental and oral health issues and concerns. To book an appointment for your next general check-up, or even to fix any issues you may be facing currently, contact our team on (03) 9796 1881.