Debunking 5 of the most notorious Dental Myths

March 11, 2020

Thousands of myths surround us in daily life. Some of them can be identified in the process of educating ourselves, but many remain unrevealed. There are certain prominent teeth related myths that have been difficult ones to debunk, as they have already made a substantial ground in society, which makes them easy to believe. However, it is essential to identify these myths, as they can bring harm to your oral health and well being. We have put together a list, which will get on the nerves of many oral health influencers. 

Taking care of baby teeth is not necessary

Infants start to have teeth erupting after the sixth month. And although people rejoice the moments when first teeth begin to show, not much care is given to them. After a full set of pearly whites appear, many parents don't take their cleaning seriously, because 'children will loose the baby teeth anyway'. However, these teeth are essential to lay the foundation for the life lasting adult teeth. Also, decay and cavities hurt babies just as they disturb adults, so daily brushing and cleaning are a must.

Patients should go to the dentist only when they feel pain

The dentists are available 24/7 throughout the year, not just to fix emergency issues. Dentists are there to provide regular checkups and advise when something is wrong to take precautions. When you get to the point of an emergency situation and dental pain, the presented bill has already multiplied several times. Two visits a year for regular check ups can save you tons of money. For instance, you can not know whether you've got TMJ disfunction, until you get assessed by a dental professional and get referred to the right specialist. By the time you have your condition diagnosed you may be in need for surgical interventions like tooth removals, TMJ surgery or sinus lift and bone augmentation.

Chewing gum is enough to have your teeth cleaned

Yes, there are many teeth cleaning remedies out there, and some of them may work well, but they can not solve a serious underlying condition. People think that chewing gum can replace tooth brushing, which is a completely wrong argument. Chewing gum can help strengthen the teeth by providing calcium ions and active ingredients like xylitol and fluoride, but it does not provide the mechanical plaque removal like tooth brushing does. It does have other benefits like stimulation of saliva production and neutralizing the acids in the oral cavity, but it doesn't offer the benefits of the regular teeth brushing.

Gum disease is avoidable

You'd be frightened if you see the statistics of how many people are diagnosed with gum disease in America. Gum disease can be aggressive or subtle depending on factors like pain threshold and immune system activity. It can cause bleeding or swelling and have long-term consequences. Gum disease can compromise your oral health and pose a threat to the bone structure of the jaws. Regularly visiting your dental hygienist for routine scaling and polishing is the key to controlling bone loss and gum inflammation.

Sugar = Cavities

It is widely assumed that sugar consumtion is strongly correlated with development of dental cavities. However, sugar doesn't necessarily cause caries. If the sugar or sugary product is left on the enamel surface for a long period of time, this will activate the bacterial methabolism to create acidic byproducts as a result of the fermentation process. Therefore the consistensy of the food is also of high importance, because the exposure plays an important role in enamel dimineralization. The most dangerous combination is high sugar content and sticky consistency, which will allow the sugar to get in contact with the tooth structures for a prolonged period of time.

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