Dental health is crucial to your overall well-being, and it is very important that you take it seriously. In addition to regularly visiting the Upper Hunt Club Dental Centre in Ottawa to have your teeth looked after, it is also a good idea to inform yourself about dental care. There are many myths and misconceptions about the care of teeth that can easily lead you astray. Here are ten common myths explained and debunked so that you can make the right choices for you and your teeth.

Myth #1: Dentists Are Only for When There is a Problem
You should certainly go to a dentist when you have a problem with your teeth, but regular, preventative care is just as important. If you wait until you feel discomfort to make an appointment, you will cost yourself a lot of money and cause unnecessary hardship and pain. Visit the Upper Hunt Club Dental Centre in Ottawa twice a year for the cleanings and exams that keep your teeth healthy and oral health in check.

Myth #2: Oral Health is Separate From General Health
While dentistry is often considered apart from regular medicine, it shouldn’t come as a shock to you that teeth are very much a part of the human body and not at all separate from it. Tooth decay and other dental issues can cause infections and deadly diseases in the body at large, which is why you should take your dental care seriously.

Myth #3: You Can Brush Your Teeth During Any Time of Day
You have long heard that you should brush your teeth in the morning and before bed, but you might be tempted to think that schedule arbitrary. Isn’t any time as good as another as long as you brush twice? No, it’s not. PM brushing is important for preventing a night with dirty teeth, and the morning brush helps clean out what saliva couldn’t wash away while sleeping.

Myth #4: Diet Soda is Okay
You've heard a million times that sugar is bad for your teeth, so maybe you think diet soda is an acceptable substitute for regular Pepsi or Coke. While it’s true that diet soda is sugar free, it is also highly acidic. The acid in the soda eats away at the enamel of your teeth for twenty minutes after every sip.

Myth #5: Baby Teeth Don’t Matter
If you have a young child, you might think that the health of their baby teeth, or primary teeth, doesn’t matter because the teeth will soon fall out anyway. In fact, the baby teeth are vitally important for their role in retaining the space for the permanent tooth to come. Cavities in baby teeth can make them fall out too soon, and this means there will be an empty space for a while before the permanent tooth grows in. In addition, improper care of baby teeth can lead to gum disease.

Myth #6: Teeth Always Get Unhealthy With Age
You might take it as a given that aging teeth become unhealthy, but to accept this is a fact is to admit defeat in a battle that, with proper care, can be steadily won. With a conscientious concern for dental health, teeth can remain healthy in the later years of life.

Myth #7: Flossing Widens the Space Between Teeth
No matter how much you floss, you do not need to worry about creating a wider space between your teeth. In reality, flossing removes nasty debris and prevents tooth decay.

Myth #8: Brushing Harder Gives a Better Clean
Brushing harder or with a firmer brush does nothing to increase effectiveness, and can actually have an adverse effect by wearing the protective enamel off the surface of your teeth.

Myth #9: Sugar is the Main Culprit
While sugar is certainly a significant cause in the formation of cavities, it is far from the only offender. Starches and carbohydrates, like those in chips and crackers, couple the sugars that cause cavities with a nasty tendency to stick to your teeth.

Myth #10: A Week of Thorough Brushing Can Undo Past Neglect
You might think that you can ignore your teeth for months on end and then overly brush for a few days to get them as good as new. In reality, the lack of regular brushing will have resulted in tartar build-up and gum inflammation that can't be brushed away in a week.

Having proper dental knowledge allows for proper dental care. If you ever have any questions regarding your oral health, bring them up during your next dental appointment at the Upper Hunt Club Dental Centre in Ottawa. Additionally, you can contact us any time to have any of your dental questions answered!