Why Looking After Your Teeth Is As Important As Looking After Your Skin

By Tabitha Acret, Dental Hygienist at AIRFLOW Dental Spa

The beauty industry is a multimillion-dollar industry with many people investing in creams, facials, hair, nails, and the list goes on. However, one of the most important beauty appointments that you can make is actually with your dental professional. Your smile, and therefore your teeth, is one of the first things people notice when they speak to you. Having the confidence to smile makes yourself and others feel good, so why not invest in a healthy one!

Did we mention a perfect smile makes you appear younger too?

Poor food choices, dehydration, smoking and excess alcohol consumption can all have a negative effect on your health. It’s important to note the role they play in ageing, whereby frequently indulging in the above can cause you to look older than you truly may be. The same rule applies to your teeth as they tend to bear the brunt of all the bad bacteria that enter your body.

Here are a number of tips to keep top of mind, to ensure you are protecting those pearly whites:

• Water is important for your overall health, your skin, and your mouth included. When you’re dehydrated this lessens the amount of saliva in your mouth, meaning it is harder to flush away bacteria and food that tends to stick to the enamel. The process of self-cleansing results in a build-up of bacteria, increasing your risk of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease.

• Smoking too can reduce the saliva levels in your mouth. Alongside the increased risk of oral disease and mouth cancers, the most common side effect is discolouration. You’ve no doubt noticed people who smoke have teeth that are more yellow in appearance, making the mouth look both aged and dirty. All of the above often elicits bad breathe as well, which is a symptom that adds to a lot of self-conscious behaviour.

• Foods high in sugar have a direct correlation to tooth decay. After eating foods that contain high amounts of sugar, preservatives, or food acids, the bacteria that remains combines with your saliva and creates a harmful biofilm that laces the outer coating of your tooth and promotes decay.

• Alcohol ends to affect our mouths in a couple of different ways. Drinks that are high in sugar content can cause decay as mentioned above, others are quite acidic and can cause erosion (wearing down of the hard outer layer). If consumed frequently and in excess, alcohol can contribute to dehydration. Beverages with darker pigment, i.e. red wine, are known to cause discolouration and staining as well.

By reducing your sugar intake and cleaning your teeth well, and regularly, your mouth will remain healthy and your teeth bright and white. It is a well-known fact that when you have healthy, pink gums your teeth will also appear much whiter.

In addition to the above, it is so important to establish regular consults and professional cleans with your local dental practice. Treatments such as the AIRFLOW© are efficient ways of reaching bacteria in those hard to reach places, not to mention the gentle and non-invasive nature of it all. Combining high-pressure water and cleansing powder this new cleaning technique leaves your teeth feeling stronger and brighter (say goodbye to that coffee coloured tinge). Without these regular check-ins, signs and symptoms of infection and decay can often go untreated.

When you visit your dentist, you are not only tending to your smile, you are taking care of your overall health. That is why visiting the dentist is one of the best beauty appointments you can make!

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ABOUT: Tabitha Acret is a dedicated and passionate award-winning Dental Hygienist. She studied a Bachelor of Oral Health at Newcastle University after working as a Dental Nurse and Practice Manager for 10 years and graduated in 2008. Since qualifying, Tabitha has become one of the most sought-after Hygienists and Educators in Australia and internationally with a fast-growing and loyal customer base of patients, dental professionals, and media.

Tabitha was previously the National Vice-President for the Dental Hygienists Association of Australia and has volunteered in many roles since graduation for the Association. She also has a passion for educating with students, working as a Clinical Educator at Sydney University, and currently works as a Clinical Educator for implant maintenance and non-surgical periodontal therapy. She lectures and writes regularly for both industry and consumer press on motivating patients, implant maintenance and disease prevention, and periodontal therapy. Winner of the 2018 Leadership Award in Dental Hygiene and the 2019 Award for Clinical Excellence, Tabitha had dedicated her professional life to continued learning and sharing her passion with the dental community.

Outside of her busy work life of lecturing and working clinically in private practice, Tabitha enjoys volunteering both locally and internationally to raise awareness to change the way oral health care is delivered to patients.

ABOUT: The recently launched EMS AIRFLOW® Dental spa means that you can now experience lighter and brighter clean teeth without the pain! No more mess, no more nails scraping like noise on the blackboard, and no more cold water. AIRFLOW® is a revolutionary, non-contact form of dental cleaning and prevention. It projects a controlled stream of air, warm water, and powder onto the tooth and in hard-to-reach areas to dislodge and remove food, bacteria, discolouration, and stains. Goodbye coffee and red wine stains! The high-pressure water/air stream cleans your teeth much faster, efficiently, and comfortably than the use of traditional cleaning methods. AIRFLOW® is akin to being at a day spa but instead of beauticians working on your face, your dentist or dental hygienist is gently exfoliating your teeth. With the water in the AIRFLOW® Dental Spa heats up to 40 degrees, it's a positively warm experience.

To experience the AIRFLOW Dental Spa visit www.airflowdentalspa.com.au to find your closest dental practice. Can’t find a practice near you? Recommend your local dental practice here: www.airflowdentalspa.com.au/suggest-practice