Healthy oral hygiene allows you to live for a longer time and make the most of your time. While most people think of a healthy lifestyle as exercising and eating the right food, maintaining dental health can significantly improve the quality of your life. After all, taking proper oral hygiene measures allows you to eat what you want without hesitation or pain.
According to the US National Library of Medicine, there is a link between oral health with your overall health. Poor oral hygiene has risks associated with heart and cardiovascular diseases. Brushing your teeth every day may not be enough, and neglecting proper care has various negative consequences. If your teeth are the reason you feel underconfident in public, you may speak to a cosmetic dentist in Phoenix.
Things that can happen if you neglect oral hygiene
- You will experience pain.
Good oral hygiene can take care of your mouth more than you think. Saliva helps maintain the pH level in your mouth, which avoids the build-up of bacteria. Poor oral health hygiene practices can cause various negative outcomes. For example, you might think that delaying a cavity treatment is not a big deal, but that can contribute to various consequences. You might suffer an infection around the tooth decay area.
- Halitosis.
Halitosis, also commonly known as “bad breath,” unprofessionally, is an embarrassing condition where you experience foul-smelling breath. This condition is not as simple to get rid of and does not go away with brushing only. When your breath smells bad, you might be conscious about speaking to other people in public. Poor dental hygiene can lead to bacteria build-up and tongue debris. A dentist can test the severity of your halitosis and recommend solutions.
- Gum disease.
Most people do not take it seriously when they experience swelling, tenderness, and pain in their gums and wait for it to heal on its own. While minor gum infections result in temporary swelling and improve after taking over-the-counter medications, sometimes they can worsen and lead to recession, bleeding, and painful cracks. If not treated at the right time, it can progress further and cause instability in your teeth.
- Loss of time and money.
Studies show that Americans lose about $1 billion every year on dental problems and treatments that could have been prevented with proper dental care. That is why it is so important to visit your dentist for a check-up regularly. However, your money is not the only thing you lose, but your time as well. A serious dental problem can be prevented with quick check-ups, but when it progresses, it can lead to weeks of downtime.