Teeth
Everyone wants the perfect Hollywood smile these days but during our quest for dazzling white teeth we are neglecting our gums.
Gum disease will affect 93% of the nation at some stage in their lives and can actually wreak havoc in the mouth. It can lead to teeth falling out if left un-treated, can cause severe bad breath and can also erode the gums. All very unpleasant!
September is Colgate Oral Health Month and this year the focus is on preventing gum disease. Anousheh Alavi, Periodontist (gum disease expert) and scientific affairs manager at Colgate told Female First all about this nasty problem and how we can prevent it.
How does someone get gum disease?
Bacteria around the gum margins of teeth (dental plaque) build up and irritate the gums. Our natural immune response tries to ward them off, making gums swollen which bleed easily as soon as a toothbrush gets anywhere near them. The longer the bacteria stay in place, the more damage they cause.
What are the symptoms?
Bleeding on brushing or flossing, red, swollen gums, but usually no pain.
How is it treated?
The aim is to remove the cause: dental professionals will do a deep clean around the teeth, and demonstrate how you can keep the gum margins all around a tooth free of bacteria at home on a daily basis. In early cases (gingivitis) when the damage has not spread to the underlying tissues thathold our teeth in place, this is all you need to revert the gums back to complete health.
If the damage has spread deeper, the aim of dental treatment is to stop it from going any further, and again your daily oral hygiene routine is critical in not letting it come back.
How can we prevent ourselves from getting it?
Keep the gum margins free of bacterial build up: through, regular toothbrushing technique using an appropriate toothbrush and toothpaste, with additional cleaning aids like floss or interdental brushes will ensure gums stay healthy.
Is gum disease a big problem in the UK?
As long as we have teeth, we are prone to gum disease. As the UK population ages and dentists clinical skills at preserving teeth get more sophisticated, the incidence of gum diseases will go up. This is why it is key to know what to look out for and what to do to prevent gum disease.
Could gum disease be linked to the fact that it is so hard to get an NHS dentist these days?
We are all born with healthy gums. Preserving the health of our gums before disease happens is easy as long as we know what to do: on a daily basis at home. Getting children to develop healthy habits at a young age is a matter of letting parents know the importance of gum health, and that oral hygiene is not simply a measure of cleanliness, but a way of safeguarding the health of our mouths. This is what public information campaigns such as Colgate Oral Health Month in partnership with the dental profession aim to do.
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