ORAL HEALTH AND COVID19 OUTBREAK - Dental Clinic in Ashok Vihar

1. ORAL HEALTH AND COVID-19 OUTBREAK By Dr. Rajat Sachdeva No one is you and that is your Power

2. Neglecting Oral Health During COVID-19 Outbreak? • During these unprecedented times of the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining a good oral hygiene should never be put on the back burner. • This is not the most normal of the times, with dental offices being shut down and developing a painful cavity during this time would be no less than a scary nightmare.

3. Why Oral Health Is Important? • Everything that enters your body has to pass through the oral cavity first. • If your oral cavity will inhabit disease-causing bacteria, they will gain access into the body’s circulatory system. • This weakens the immune system and makes it susceptible to infections. • Oral healthcare immediately gives the immune system the required boost to improve overall body health. • Therefore, you must follow a simple, at-home dental hygiene routine to prevent any dental issues during the pandemic.

4. KnowThe Culprit Behind Dental Diseases? Do you know that the root cause of most of your oral problems is plaque? • “Dental Plaque” is a sticky, colorless or pale yellow film that is constantly being formed on your teeth. • If not removed regularly, it accumulates minerals from saliva and hardens into a yellow-brown substance, “Dental Calculus”, that tightly adheres to the interdental spaces and subgingival areas and cannot be usually removed without professional help. • Plaque, mostly comprises of bacteria, that produce acids whenever any food, especially refined carbohydrates, enter into oral cavity, that attack the tooth enamel, thereby weakening the tooth structure and resulting in cavities. • These notorious bacteria also contribute to the problem of halitosis. • Dental plaque begins forming on teeth 4 -12 hours after brushing therefore, must be removed regularly to prevent it’s mineralization.

5. Hush, Brush, No Rush! Prioritize Your Dental Hygiene For effective plaque removal, make sure to : • Brush twice daily, first thing in the morning and last thing before retiring to your bed at the end of the day. • For at least two minutes. • Brush thoroughly and not aggressively. • Clean each and every possible surface of your teeth thoroughly in order to maintain healthy, caries-free teeth.

6. Have you already tried your hands on an electric toothbrush? If not, there can be no better time than now! • An electric toothbrush has shown to offer the highest efficacy of oral hygiene only if maneuvered correctly. For patients suffering with arthritis or any other condition that limits hand motion, it is advised : • To use an electric toothbrush or a toothbrush with a larger handle. • Attach the toothbrush handle to your hand with a wide elastic band. Choose a small-to-medium sized brush head that can reach into all parts of the mouth, especially the back of the mouth and having soft-to-medium, multi-tufted, round-ended nylon bristles.

7. American Dental Association (ADA) Recommendations • Replace the toothbrush every three to four months or even sooner if the bristles are frayed. • Use a fluoridated toothpaste as they have proven to strengthen the tooth enamel, making teeth less vulnerable to bacterial attacks and hence, protect from dental caries. 

8. Are You Following the Proper Toothbrushing Technique? The Technique Matters! Follow “Modified Bass Technique” to Achieve Maximum Effectiveness. 1 5 2 3 4

9. Floss And Become A Boss! Are You An Intermittent Flosser? • Tooth brushing alone has shown to clean only three out of the total five surfaces of the tooth. • Toothbrushes often fail to clean the spaces between the teeth and subgingival depths. • Interdental brushes and floss help to dislodge the plaque and bacteria, present in interdental spaces even after thorough tooth brushing. • Without flossing, the plaque and bacteria cannot be completely eliminated from these areas, which can become a potential source of dental caries and gingival and periodontal diseases. • Flossing also helps to combat odor-causing bacteria and hence, halitosis. • Never use any other means, except a floss or an interdental brush, to dislodge food particles locked in between your teeth.

10. 5 4 1 2 3 Floss The Right Way! When flossing, stick to a regular pattern. Start at the top and work from left to right, then move to the bottom and again work from the left to right. This way you're less likely to miss any teeth.

11. Swish And Rinse With A Mouthwash! • Tooth brushing and flossing gain maximum effectiveness if followed by a mouth rinse, however, it should not be mistaken as their replacement. • Mouthwashes help to flush away any remaining, loosened food debris and take your oral hygiene regimen to the next level. • Warm saline water or a non-alcohol based mouthwash, a couple of times a day, can reduce the amount of plaque formation on the teeth. • Mouthwashes not only make your pearly whites shine brighter but have also shown to be lethal to most of the oral, odor-causing bacteria. • Fluoride mouthwashes help prevent dental caries. • Chlorhexidine mouthwash reduce plaque build up on your teeth but may cause staining of teeth, increase calculus build up and may cause a persistent metallic taste in the mouth.

12. Don’t Miss Out On Your Tongue! Amplify Your Dental Hygiene • Tongue needs to be cleaned too. • At least once daily. • Either with a tongue scraper or a toothbrush. • To combat the oral bacteria that cause halitosis or bad breath, more effectively. • Refrain from using stainless steel tongue cleaners as they can damage taste buds.

13. Show Some Affection To Your Toothbrush! • A germ-free toothbrush is the primary step to keeping your teeth sterile. • Always try to keep your toothbrush in an open area to allow it to dry adequately so as to prevent any bacterial growth. • Storing toothbrushes at least five to six feet away from the toilet helps to prevent contamination with aerosols that are generated on flushing. • It is advised that you rinse the toothbrush with lukewarm water every time before use. • Additionally, you should keep your floss and tongue cleaners covered. • Consider replacing your toothbrush with a new one if you are recovering from any illness especially COVID-19 infection.

14. Messy Dental Appliances – The Roadblocks To Good Oral Hygiene! • Removable dentures and removable orthodontic appliances must always be cleansed after every meal or whenever possible with commercially available cleansing solutions and/or tablets or even with tap water. • If not cleaned thoroughly and regularly, they can serve as home to numerous bacteria due to lodgment of food particles underneath these appliances.

15. Keep Calm! • Stress, especially during these difficult times amidst the pandemic, can result in various health problems including dental complaints like xerostomia, bruxism and even chronic recurrent oral ulcers. • Indulge in a fitness routine, learn new hobbies, meditate, have sufficient sound sleep and socialize virtually with near and dear ones. • Persistent symptoms can be alarming and require you to consult the dentist immediately. It is, therefore, necessary to avoid stress.

16. Fed Up With The Quarantine Snacking Already? Eat Healthy, Stay Healthy! • Although, it can be difficult to resist snacking when stationed at your homes, but it is imperative to avoid in-between meal snacking and stress-snacking. • Especially, avoid processed and refined carbohydrates, sugary foods and frizzy beverages as they are known to cause higher risk of dental caries. • Ensure that you consume tooth-friendly foods including fresh fruits, vegetables, proteins, whole grains, yoghurts and other dairy products. • This time should be utilized judiciously to establish a proper health, fitness and diet regimen. • Stay hydrated as it also helps protect your teeth by flushing your oral cavity frequently.

17. Resist And Quit Unhealthy Habits! • Switching to unhealthy habits like smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol in order to overcome stress will land you into deeper pits. • Smoking and drinking habits have been proven to accelerate the risks of developing periodontal diseases and oral cancers.

18. Toothaches Taking A Toll On You? • Toothaches, especially the ones that interfere with sleep can be managed at home until you can see a dentist. • Keeping your head elevated with the help of pillows, using an ice pack compression and salt water rinses can help you have a good night’s sleep. • Home remedies can be followed such as applying clove oil, cool peppermint tea bags, garlic paste, vanilla extract directly at the affected site for numbing the pain. • However, these are temporary measures that lack much evidence. Some over-the-counter drugs for pain relief can be used but you must try to consult the dentist.

19. Worried About Bleeding Gums? • Many people, especially after starting with a new oral care regimen, complain with bleeding gums. • However, it is only indicative of the underlying gum disease which will probably get better once your gums become healthier. • If your symptoms persist for more than a week or two, it can be a sign of gingivitis which can further progress into periodontitis. • To prevent that from happening, you must visit the dentist.

20. Have You Been Grinding Your Teeth Lately? • Bruxism or night grinding, has become more prevalent during these stressful times. • It can be detrimental for the Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) health and these conditions can welcome periodontal diseases due to interference with proper oral hygiene maintenance. • It is, therefore, necessary to break and effectively treat this habit as and when it is first recognized.

21. Don’t Shy Away From A Dentist! Seek adequate dental treatments and therapies if you have chronic bleeding or inflamed gums, persistent toothaches, recurrent mouth ulcers, abnormal teeth grinding habits or any other dental emergencies that demand prompt and timely management of your condition.

22. Remember The Goal! • The major goal of maintaining a good oral health should be to ensure an optimal immune system. • Having a healthy mouth is the key to allowing your body’s immune system to fight off the notorious germs. • It is important to take care of the body, both mentally and physically, including the pearly whites, particularly during these times when immunity boosting is hyped to protect yourself from contracting the COVID-19 infection. • Oral health begins at home but optimal oral care begins with a personal choice. • Follow proper oral hygiene measures to keep the tooth cavities and gum diseases at a bay!