Myth – You only need to visit a dentist when you are in pain.
Fact – To avoid pain, costly and complex treatment process and unwanted damages it is important to visit your dentist regularly for preventive check up. This helps in early detection of caries, cavities, gum diseases and many more problems.
Myth – Harder brushing for better teeth cleaning.
Fact – Toothbrush with hard bristles and aggressive brushing technique causes erosion of enamel ( which is the outer most layer of tooth) along with gum recession. This will result in sensitivity. To avoid this everyone should use toothbrush with soft/ extrasoft/ ultrasoft bristles and brushing should be done with a gentle pressure.
Myth– Toothbrushing after each meal is more effective.
Fact – Toothbrushing twice in a day for 2min in each session is sufficient enough. Brushing after each meal will not add any extra benefits, rather excessive brushing causes loss of enamel surface. Tooth brushing before bedtime at night and when you wake up in the morning is highly recommend because our teeth become vulnerable to dental caries and gum disease causing bacteria as antimicrobial saliva production slow down during sleep at night time.
Myth – Dental flossing create gap between two teeth.
Fact – Dental flossing is very good and effective hygiene maintaining practice. It does not create any gap between two teeth. Rather the food deposits which get lodged between the gum and teeth surface, can be easily cleared out with help of dental floss.
Myth– Oral health is not connected to overall health.
Fact – Your oral health is directly related to the overall health. Bacterias causing gum diseases can enter the bloodstream and lead to some serious health issues like cardiac problem, diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer’s, respiratory distress, preterm low birth weight delivery, AIDS and many more. Taking care of your oral hygiene will take care of your overall health.
Myth– Scaling and polishing ( professional teeth cleaning) weakens teeth.
Fact – Scaling and polishing is the only preventive measurement which can protect your teeth and gum from cavities and advanced gum diseases. It removes the plaque and tartar, not the enamel. This procedure reduces teeth mobility and increase the life span of your teeth by improving the oral health.
Myth– There is no need to go for scaling regularly and it requires only to make teeth whiter.
Fact – it is highly recommend that everyone should go for scaling and polishing in every 6 months. This procedure definitely will make your teeth cleaner and add extra shining effect but most importantly it makes your teeth healthier and bacteria free. Many dental problems can be avoided by professional teeth cleaning if you go for it every 6 months.
Myth – Little bit of gum bleeding during brushing is okay.
Fact – Minimal sign of bleeding from gum is not at all acceptable as it’s a clear sign of presence of calculus inside the gum, which is the causative factor for gum inflammation and eventually this will cause gum recession and teeth mobility. The fact is no one should wait for the gum to bleed for visiting a dentist. To avoid this situation professional deep cleaning is advised twice in a year.
Myth – Baby teeth don’t matter as they will fall out eventually.
Fact – Milk teeth or baby teeth play a very crucial role in speech development, proper eating habit development and guide the permanent teeth into correct place. Decay in milk teeth can cause pain infection and may affects the development of permanent teeth.
Myth– Commercially available sensitivity preventing toothpaste are capable enough to cure teeth sensitivity
Fact – Enamel loss, cavities, gum recession, calculus formation these are the causative factor to create dental sensitivity. So without treating the causative factor no toothpaste will help you to control the sensitivity.
Myth – Teeth whitening will damage your teeth
Fact – Professional teeth whitening is safe and will not affect the tooth enamel. However mild sensitivity for few days may occur after the procedure which can be easily taken care of with professional de sensitizing gel.
Myth – Root canal treatment takes endless sittings and it’s painful process.
Fact – We have the high end facilities along with our expertise to make the root canal treatment absolutely pain less. Root canal treatment can be done in single sitting also, though conventionally root canal treatment takes 2 to 3 sitting. The real fact is whether it can be done in one or two sittings will depend on the intensity and extension of the infection. If the infection spreads beyond the root apex and causes bone loss surrounding the tooth then root canal treatment requires more sitting.
Myth – Warm salt water mouth rinse is good enough to control the toothache caused by dental cavities
Fact– In our practice we hear it very often that whenever someone suffers from toothache they immediately starts hot water mouth rinse. Hot water mouth rinse will not reduce the infection which is the causative factor to create the pain. Dentist advise to rinse mouth with warm salt water after tooth extraction which helps in gum healing, but dental cavities which caused by bacterias can not be treated with hot water mouth rinse. Proper treatment requires to take care of the situation.
Myth– Sugar is the sole cause to create dental cavities.
Fact – Of course sugar does contribute to the formation of cavities, but its not the sugar itself that causes the issue. However, it’s not true. Instead, it’s the bacteria that eat the sugar. Sticky foods, such as starches, attract bacteria that thrive on and around teeth. These bacteria produce an acid compound that promotes tooth decay. Other sugary favorites include sodas and energy drinks. Besides their often high sugar content, these beverages are also acidic, which amplifies the enamel-weakening effect before bacteria have a chance to act. This makes good brushing habits and regular dental checkups essential for fighting the effects of sugary foods and drinks.
Myth – Charcoal toothpaste is better.
Fact – Charcoal toothpaste offers temporary whitening and little protection for your teeth. However using it for long time can be abrasive for the enamel.
Myth – Root canal treated tooth does not need any after care.
Fact – Exactly the way natural tooth gets affected by bacterias and lead to cavities, the same way RCT treated tooth with a crown can also get the secondary infection. The reason behind this is negligence in oral health care. Food lodgment, not brushing twice, avoiding flossing and skipping the periodic professional dental cleaning will eventually lead to the formation of secondary infection. Hence it doesn’t matter whether you have any RCT treated tooth / implant supported tooth or all original tooth, taking proper oral health care and most importantly getting the professional dental cleaning done at least twice in a year is utmost necessary to avoid any dental issues.
Myth– Tooth extraction leads to loss of eyesight
Fact – There is no anatomical connection between teeth and eyes. No case has been recorded in today’s time where eyesight was lost due to tooth extraction. In fact avoiding the extraction sometimes cause spreading of the infection from upper teeth to the maxillary air sinus which can be very much aggressive to affect the floor of the orbit.
Myth – Chewing gum is as good as brushing your teeth
Fact – It’s true that chewing a sugar free gum is effective to produce more saliva that will help to wash away the acid and sugar build up on the teeth but it can’t be the replacement of tooth brushing. Brushing twice daily is should not be avoided and it can’t be replaced with any other remedies.
Myth – Everybody needs extraction of wisdom teeth
Fact – If wisdom teeth are fully erupted, cleanable, not causing any disturbance to the adjacent tooth, not causing any crowding, pain or infection they don’t need to be extracted.
Myth – if wisdom teeth don’t hurt, they are fine
Fact – Sometimes wisdom teeth don’t have any pain but the position and angulation of the tooth can be a causative factor for food lodgement surrounding the adjacent tooth which will lead to cavities and infection. To avoid this situation extraction of wisdom tooth is required.
Myth – Dental implants are very painful process
Fact – With modern technologies dental implant can be done with absolutely mild to no pain. We consider it as a minor surgery as it takes less time and most of the time patient experience no to very less discomfort while doing the surgery. With proper post op care the recovery is also very fast and patient and get back to their normal routine within one or two days.
Myth – If a patient is Diabetic, he/she can not go for dental implants
Fact– Controlled diabetic patients are absolutely acceptable for dental implants. With proper pre op medications and post op care controlled diabetic patients can easily go for dental implants with a higher success rate. But uncontrolled diabetes is definitely a risk factor for successful dental implants, hence in this situation patients are advised to take the medical supervision to get it under control before implant placement.
Myth– Success rate of dental implants depends on the age of the patient
Fact – From younger adults to older people, anyone can be eligible for dental implants if the jaw bones are healthy and adequate enough. Bone condition and oral health are the key factor to decide the eligibility for dental implants, not age of patient. Well maintained implant supported teeth have better prognosis that dentures and crown-bridges.
Myth – Implant procedure takes years to finish.
Fact – While the total process, starting from implants placement to crown fixation may take few months to achieve the optimal healing, implant placement does not always take years. This is absolutely case specific. Sometimes bone condition is not adequate and we need to opt for bone grafting, in this situation it takes longer time. On the other hand, immediate implant placement right after tooth extraction even the immediate loading of crown is also possible if the bone health is desirable and adequate torque is achieved during the process.
Myth – Dentures are easier option for older patients
Fact – While dentures are cheaper and takes less time to be delivered, they are often very uncomfortable and loosen over time. From a discomfort due to having no teeth to wear e movable big plate (that gives the constant feeling of wearing something artificial), the whole experience takes away the willingness of eating. On other hand implants are a permanent and fixed support, offer proactive preservation of jaw bone health, and give a feeling like natural teeth as they merge with your jaw bone.
Myth – Dental treatment is expensive
Fact – The truth is it’s not dental treatment, your negligence is expensive. The earlier you visit to dentist, the cheaper will be the treatment cost. We at Santra’s Dental, always advise to our each patient to come for a regular checkup and teeth cleaning in every 6 months. This maintenance practice will easily keep you away from many dental problems, and it will be pocket friendly too. If you wait till the pain to occur definitely it will required more complex process that can be costly too. Hence to avoid unnecessary expenses visit your dentist regularly even if you have no pain or discomfort.
