3D illustration showing dentist tools and dental plaque on model. 3D illustration.Taking care of your oral health consists of several different practices, and each one is essential to maintain. Among the various areas of dentistry, preventive care is the most important to consider. It often consists of brushing your teeth, flossing, and rinsing with mouthwash, but no routine is considered complete without a routine checkup and cleaning. But what does this mean for other components of your oral health? In today’s blog, your Cedar Rapids, IA dentist discusses the importance of caring for your gum tissues and how a periodontal cleaning can help.

Preventing the Spread of Gum Infection

When we are children, our parents or guardians likely emphasized the importance of brushing our teeth. Indeed, oral hygiene may have been the driving force, but learning appropriate methods for keeping your smile healthy and protected helped you significantly as time went on. In fact, it laid a solid foundation of oral health practices that you continue to perform today.

Even today, one of the most common bacteria-related concerns out there is tooth decay, which affects millions of people in the United States yearly. Though it is certainly a common concern, it does not mean it is the only one to fret about. In fact, gum disease and infection occur at a similar rate to that of tooth decay, but what exactly can we say we are doing to combat it?

You see, gum disease and infection occurs when oral bacteria make their way beneath the gum line and contribute to plaque buildup on your teeth roots. To learn more about this process and what treatment options you have for alleviating these concerns, give our team a call today.

Cleaning Beneath the Gum Line

When plaque deposits form on your teeth roots, they mostly exist unbothered. This allows the situation to worsen, and before long, you might experience noticeable symptoms. These can include swelling, bleeding gums, and even loose teeth.

To address these issues, your dentist may recommend a periodontal cleaning. This process requires more than one visit to complete and consists of cleaning beneath the gum line to remove plaque and tartar deposits that have formed. Once this is complete, we will polish your teeth roots to smooth them, ideally preventing bacterial attachment. Contact our team to learn more today.

Additional Practices for Perio Health

While in-office treatment exists, it is always going to be better to practice consistent prevention on your own. In fact, flossing between meals has been shown to reduce your risks of developing gum disease and infections, and our team encourages all of our patients to floss regularly.

Learn More Today

Contact Cedar Dental in Cedar Rapids, IA by calling 319-364-7108 to schedule your next appointment with our team and learn more about the importance of taking care of your periodontal tissues.