Taking care of your teeth isn’t just a matter of good hygiene, it’s an important way to keep your teeth and gums clear of infections, cavities, and diseases that can affect more than just your mouth.  If you don’t want to see a periodontist in Long Island or see your teeth removed or replaced, you owe it to yourself to brush and floss regularly, see a dentist every six months, and watch out for the following conditions:

Plaque

A certain kind of bacteria loves to live in your mouth and live on the food and sugar that sticks between your teeth and otherwise stays in your mouth.  These bacteria can damage the enamel that is the outer layer of your teeth, causing cavities and plaque.  Plaque is what happens to your enamel after the bacteria finish with it, and it’s hard enough to need a professional to scrape it off regularly.

Gingivitis

Plaque is the perfect place for bacteria to hide and grow, and when it builds up near the base of a tooth the bacteria can spread down into the gums.  The gums react to this by swelling up and turning red, plus they tend to bleed easily.

Swelling and bleeding can also happen if you brush or floss for the first time in ages, but they eventually go down after a few hours and this stops completely if you go back to brushing and flossing regularly.  On the other hand, gingivitis sticks around and only gets worse, plus the bacteria can give you some very bad breath.

Periodontitis

Gingivitis is a mild form of periodontal disease, and it becomes periodontitis when the bacteria infection starts to affect the bones beneath the gums.  When your body tries to destroy this infection, it releases chemicals that also happen to weaken your gums and the bones that surround and secure your teeth.  If these bones become weak enough, your teeth can become loose and eventually fall out, and no periodontist in Long Island or anywhere else in the world will be able to put them back.  And like any other infection, there’s a danger that the bacteria will spread.

Good oral hygiene is the number one way to avoid periodontitis and keep your teeth healthy, but sometimes complications from other diseases and harsh treatments can make periodontitis more likely.  But whatever the cause happens to be, it’s important to see your local periodontist in Long Island to learn how to treat an advanced case and find out what options are available to replace teeth that need to be removed.