Video:Gum Care 101

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Transcript:Gum Care 101

Hi, I'm Dr. Lawrence Spindel. I have a dental practice in Manhattan with an emphasis on cosmetic implant and preventive dentistry. I'm here today for about.com to discuss some of the things you can do at home to insure your gums remain healthy.

Cleaning Between Teeth

It's important that on a daily basis you brush and floss your teeth. If you're not going to floss your teeth, then you should use some other device to clean in between your teeth. Some of the other devices are little inter dental brushes, stimulants, dental tape. All of these can be used effectively to clean in between your teeth. But it is important that this is done on a regular basis. Everybody's different, everybody's schedule is different. But it is important to find some time that you are unharried, so that you can effectively clean your teeth. It doesn't have to take more than five minutes but it does take some time to do it properly.

Toothbrushing and Gum Care

On a daily basis, I think that you should be aware that you should brush your teeth at least once, preferably twice a day, and floss your teeth at least once per day. If you miss a session, it's not the end of the world. If you only brushed your teeth, god forbid, three times a week, you still would have most of the benefit. Because the bacteria in your mouth become progressively nastier the longer they remain on your teeth. The overnight plaque is not as harmful as the plaque that has been there for days. So, it's very important to remove the colonies that form on your teeth with regularity to keep them from becoming more nasty, and more likely to create harmful effects on your gums and your teeth.

Waterpiks for Gums

Some patients are advised to use a waterpik. When using the Waterpik, the patient applies the Waterpik inter proximally to clean debris that forms between the teeth. It's not used for plaque control per se. Instead, what it's doing is it's pushing water through the teeth at a high velocity and it does tend to create a vacuum effect, so it cleans the crevicular fluid out on a daily basis.

Toothpaste and Gum Care

Many people ask which tooth paste should I use. It's usually most important that you use a toothpaste. The particular toothpaste that you use is less important to the health of your gums then how you brush your teeth. Probably only five percent of the cleansing of your teeth comes from the toothpaste itself. Ninety-five percent comes from the brushing.

Mouthwash and Gum Care

Similarly, mouthwashes, though they are potent disinfectants are not necessarily advised for all patients. They change the flora in the mouth. A healthy flora, would be a normal flora. Not one that's been effected by regular use of a disinfectant mouthwash.

You have to remember that on a regular basis, you have to be committed to keeping your mouth clean. If you go to your dentist on a regular basis to have your mouth cleaned, these areas will be cleaned in a time frame that will not allow the bacteria that are there to negatively affect your gums health.

Thanks for watching. To learn more visit us on the Web at About.com.