Folksy :: National Smile Month

Shared by woollywotnots in the Soaps and Cosmetics

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The British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) is using the tag line ‘Talking Teeth’ to encourage members of the public to pass oral health messages on to people around them. National Smile Month kicked off on the 17th May and runs through to the 16th June. The emphasis is on making us all much more attractive through better dental hygiene. According to Dr Nigel Carter, Chief Executive of the BDHF, “there’s no doubt that a healthy smile is central to a person’s overall attractiveness and can also have an impact on their general happiness”. Well, of course – how happy would you be if you couldn’t smile? Dr Carter goes on, “National Smile Month” aims to provide simple, practical oral health information to as many people as possible”.

So what can we do to clean up our act and put the makers of dental drills out of business? It seems the key thing is a bit of simple self-discipline. The British Dental Health Foundation offers the six tips shown below:

1. Brush your teeth twice a day using a soft brush (hard brushes can wear down the tooth enamel causing sensitivity). Brush in small circular movements, and brush your tongue as well! It might sound daft, but that’s where most of the bacteria that cause smelly breath live.

2. Change your toothbrush every 2-3 months. Old brushes do not remove plaque as effectively.

3. Tooth decay is caused by sugar – so don’t eat so much of it! It’s not how much sugar you have, but how often you have it. Every time you eat or drink sugary food, your teeth are put under acid attack for up to an hour afterwards.

4. Visit your dentist regularly. Well, they would say that, wouldn’t they? But it’s sound advice.

5. Floss at least once a day. Flossing removes plaque and food particles from between the teeth and under the gumline – areas a toothbrush can’t reach. This is something we’re really bad at as a nation, but it can make a huge difference.

6. Chew gum or eat cheese!

Chewing gum doesn’t just make you look hard – it increases the flow of saliva in your mouth, which in turns reduces the acidic build-up that damages your teeth. But make sure it’s sugar-free gum! Another good trick is to have a piece of cheese after your meal. It’s strongly alkaline, so it’s another excellent – if unlikely – weapon in the war on tooth decay.

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