Adults

Oral Care For Adults

Brushing Your Teeth

Brushing your teeth does not have to take a long time to be done well. Please follow these steps in order to clean your teeth effectively. The following steps apply to the use of a “regular” (non-electric) toothbrush. If you use an electric toothbrush, the same basic ideas apply. Remember to apply gentle pressure and to not hold the brush on any one tooth surface for more than a second or two.

Hold the brush handle in the palm of your hand with the thumb around the thick portion and your fingers curled around the handle. Angle the brush filaments (“bristles”) upward toward the gums for your top teeth (at about a 45 degree angle) and downward for your bottom teeth (also at about a 45 degree angle). Gently place the filaments against two to three teeth at a time with the brush bristles in the groove between your teeth and gums. Using light pressure (so the bristles do not bend very much), vibrate the brush back and forth, using short strokes, ten or more times per group of two to three teeth. Move to the next group of teeth and repeat the process until all surfaces of all of your teeth have been cleaned. The tongue side of your bottom front teeth should be cleaned in a slightly different way. For these surfaces, hold the brush parallel to your teeth and place the tips of the bristles at the end of the brush into the grooves between your teeth and gums at a 45 degree angle. Using short strokes, gently vibrate the brush back and forth at least 10 times. Keep the bristles in the groove and work on one or two teeth at a time. Then move on to the next group of teeth. Do not forget to gently brush the chewing surfaces of all of your teeth as well, gently vibrating back and forth about 10 times per group of teeth brushed. Brush your teeth in a pattern so that you know you have brushed all of your teeth and have not skipped any areas. By practicing these techniques conscientiously, you can develop good habits that will last you a lifetime, maximizing the chances you will have a clean and healthy mouth for years to come!

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Flossing Your Teeth

Flossing your teeth is very important as a toothbrush can not get all the way in between your teeth to clean all of the sides of your teeth. Tooth decay and gum disease can be prevented by flossing on a regular basis. Once you practice, it can become fairly quick and easy.

Use a piece of floss that is about 12-15 inches long. Hold the floss with the thumb and index or middle finger of both hands and wrap the loose ends around your middle or ring fingers. About 1 inch of floss should be held between the thumbs and fingers. For your bottom teeth, direct the floss downward with your fingers on top of the floss. Keep a finger or thumb on the tongue side of your teeth, and one on the cheek side of the teeth as well. For your top teeth, direct the floss upward with your fingers and/or thumbs under the floss. Again keep a finger or thumb on the tongue side of your teeth, and one of these on the cheek side as well. Gently position the floss so that the portion of floss on the cheek side is lower than the portion on the tongue side. Gently slide the floss back and forth to get it down between the teeth. Try to form a “C-shaped” piece of floss in contact with each tooth side being worked on. Clean one side surface of one tooth at a time, gently sliding the floss up and down the tooth. Control the floss and do not force it way down under your gums. Gently push the floss toward the back of your mouth for tooth surfaces “pointing” toward the front of the mouth and gently pull the floss toward the front of your mouth for tooth surfaces “pointing” toward the back of your mouth. Gently pass the floss over the tips of your gums and carefully pull the floss out from between your teeth. Before moving to the next surface of your teeth, advance a new section of floss between your fingers. Remember to floss all of the side surfaces of all of your teeth every time you floss (including the back sides of your backmost teeth). Floss in the same pattern every time so that you do not miss any areas. You could, for instance, start all the way back on the top right, come to the front and finish the top teeth back on the top left before repeating this pattern for your bottom teeth. The important thing is to be gentle, to work in a pattern, to get all of the sides of your teeth, and to floss as often as possible. The more you practice, the quicker and easier it gets. The more you floss, the cleaner and healthier your teeth and gums will be.

For more information, Please click HERE, and then choose Flossing