Oral health is one of the most overlooked parts of our overall wellbeing. It is unlikely that you have ever heard someone make a New Year’s resolution to brush their teeth more often. Most of the time, personal health is looked at through the lens of exercise such as running, cardio, yoga, or hitting the gym more often. Few consider the dangers of neglecting their oral hygiene.
Your Gums Tell You Plenty If You Listen
There are multiple causes of gum recession and some are mind-boggling due to how we are told to care for our teeth. If you aggressively brush and floss, you could be doing damage to your gums and teeth. The key is to be gentle and consistent. Use the soft part of your toothbrush near your gums and you should see the problem start to go away. The great news is that receding gums don’t always require a visit to the dentist. It would be wise to keep an annual appointment and get advice if you notice problems, but most can be fixed on their own.
Other causes can come from genetics. If your parents had gum issues, you are more likely to as well. There isn’t an easy fix for this that you can do at home, but a dentist or gum specialist, can ensure that the issue is minimized or eradicated. You may also grind your teeth in your sleep, which can be a major cause of recession but is easily handled. A mouth guard is just one option that can reduce the issues that come from the grinding.
This may not be a surprise to anyone, but poor habits when it comes to oral health can be a major cause. Infrequent brushing, smoking, eating acidic foods more often than you should, and a wide range of other things your parents warned you about all lead to gum recession.
How Serious Is It?
In most cases, a few changes to your habits at home can make all the difference. Your gums are tissue that will heal the same way your skin heals when scraped or cut – it just requires a bit more work. There are very few issues that can’t be fixed easily, but the more serious issues are still fairly painless and easy to fix with a trip to your dentist. Your dental professional can give you an easy answer on how to overcome the problem and at worst you will be faced with minor surgery. Most of the time, though, working with your dentist will be all you need to do to fix the problem and they will provide professional grade brushes and oral hygiene care items to ensure that you get back on the right track as quickly as possible. The only mistake you can make is neglecting the problem – other than that, everything is treatable.
