A good smile while meeting a person is considered the best gesture. However, smiling, laughing, talking, and chewing food are done by a set of 32 sensory organs called teeth. The teeth are an important part of the human body and their function in speech, chewing food, and giving shape to the face is well known to us. People who suffer from dental health problems due to negligence in taking care of their oral cavity suffer from dental caries, crooked tooth, rotten tooth, missing tooth, misshapen jaw, gingivitis, or even gum tissue illness that can easily weaken the capacity to consume and talk properly, induce ache and also bad breath. Moreover, treating a diseased tooth through the process of surgery is expensive. When bacteria and other microorganisms attack the tooth due to bad oral hygiene, they eat through the enamel, and gradually with time the root of the teeth is exposed. This is called Cavity. The symptoms from cavity formation are found only after a dental problem arises and it occurs much later when the decay has affected the enamel. Thus it is very much important to take care of your gums and teeth. Removing dental plaques on daily basis is very much necessary.

The following are some best practices that can keep teeth and gums healthy.

• Brush your teeth twice a day, once in the morning after waking up and second, before going to bed at night. Brushing your teeth properly helps you in getting rid of the germs and plaques that accumulate in your mouth throughout the day.
• Use a proper brush for brushing your teeth. Toothbrush with a small head and soft bristles should always be your choice when it comes to brushing your teeth. The proper technique of brushing your teeth should be to make small gentle circular motions on your teeth and avoid back- and forth- motions.
• Brush your teeth for a minimum time of two minutes. According to the American Dental Association, toothbrush should be changed every three months and two minutes should be spent on brushing teeth.
• Do not forget to brush your tongue and use a tongue cleaner. This will prevent bad mouth odor and protect your mouth from oral health problems.
• Always choose a tooth paste that contains fluoride. Fluoride has a powerful defense mechanism against tooth decay as it is derived from an element called fluorine. In a recent study it was found that brushing teeth with toothpaste or tooth powders that do not contain fluoride makes them prone to cavities and suffer from oral health problems.
• Wash your mouth properly after eating food. This is very much important for good oral health hygiene. Generally, children tend to forget to wash their mouth after eating. So, parents should teach good oral hygiene to their children.
• Regular use of soft drinks, fruit juices, diet cokes, and sweet dishes should be avoided. Regular use of such products weakens the enamel and causes hole in the tooth and also leads to dental plaque.
• Use mouthwash for good oral health. Mouth wash reduces the amount of acid in the mouth, remineralizes the teeth, and cleans interior parts of the mouth where brushing is not possible. They contain antibacterial agents that control plaque and gingivitis.
• Consume 8-10 glasses of water daily. Avoid overly processed and deep-fried foods, high intake of tea and coffee. Eat freshly prepared food, fruits, and vegetables.
• It is advised to children as well as adolescents to visit a dentist every six months for a complete oral health checkup. The dentist will check for visual signs of cavities, gum disease, will clean the teeth, and also check for signs of cancer. The dentist will provide better management tips for good oral health hygiene.
• Avoid smoking, chewing tobacco, and gutkha. They not only damage your teeth and gums but also have a high risk to cause oral cancer. Yellowing of teeth, bad odor from mouth are some of the outcomes of using tobacco and cigarettes.
• For babies and toddlers, parents should clean their gum with lukewarm water. Babies should not go to bed without cleaning their mouth after drinking milk from bottles.
• Make sure that your children are spitting out the toothpaste and not gulping it down their throat. Keep the toothpaste away from small children.