Cairns Dental Hygiene

Dental hygiene is an important part of keeping your teeth for life

At Future Dental, we take dental hygiene seriously and see it as an important part of ensuring you have your teeth for life. Some of our dental hygiene services are listed below.

Cairns dental hygiene diagnostic services include:

• Evaluation and assessment of your periodontal (gum) tissue
• Evaluating your risks of severe or even life-threatening disease caused by gum disease
• Necessary cavity and bone level detecting X-rays
• Checking your biting, chewing and swallowing patterns
• Evaluating possible cosmetic enhancements of your smile with a special interest in teeth whitening
• Evaluating causes and recommendations for treatment of any concerns

Cairns dental hygiene preventative services include:

• Oral cancer examination and screening
• Assessing your bacterial count and risk for dental decay (caries)
• Application of pit and fissure sealants
• Cleaning and scaling of teeth to remove all plaque and calculus (tartar)
• Removal of all surface stains from teeth
• Polishing your gold, silver or composite resin fillings or crowns
• Custom mouthguards

Cairns dental hygiene educational services:

• Tooth brushing and flossing instruction
• Personalised oral home care regime with recommendations of the best products to use at home
• Dietary advice and counselling to reduce oral disease.
• Education about your particular risk factors for oral health problems
• Assessing whether parents are actually spreading the bacteria that cause tooth decay to their own children and babies
• Assessing your risk of gum disease as a potential cause of heart attack, stroke and other serious or even life-threatening diseases and conditions.

The serious side of poor dental hygiene

Did you know that dental caries (tooth decay) is a transmissible disease most commonly spread to children by parents and relatives quite innocently?

Did you know that your risk of heart attack or stroke caused by moderate to severe gum disease is twice that of having high cholesterol?

The bacteria that infect your gums in periodontal disease cause your body to produce C-Reactive Proteins (CRPs). CRPs are linked to the development of fatty deposits or plaques that line your major blood vessels. The plaques are apt to break off and be pushed through your arteries until they lodge in and block smaller arteries in your heart, brain or lungs. The result is a heart attack or stroke.

Discover how gum disease can cause a heart attack!

Why is it so vital to have your regular Dental Examination & Maintenance visits?

• You probably think it’s important to keep your teeth for life and you probably already know that to have healthy teeth, you need healthy gums.
• You may not be aware that healthy gums are far more important than just to keep your teeth for life.
• The scientific world now knows of the very strong link between gum disease and a number of serious diseases which can be life-threatening.
• The germs involved in gum disease along with their bi-products and your own bodies inflammatory and immune products affect many different organ systems and tissues in your body.

There are strong known links between gum disease and other diseases including:

1. Diabetes
2. Stroke
3. Coronary Artery Disease, Heart Attacks and Angina
4. Infective Endocarditis
5. Elevated Cholesterol Levels
6. Pre-term Birth of babies
7. Low Birth-Weight babies
8. Bacterial Pneumonia
9. Chronic Kidney Disease
10. Rheumatoid Arthritis
11. Increase of breast cancer risk in post-menopausal women
12. A degree of suspicion now also exists of the possible link between Gum Disease and Osteoporosis as well as Alzheimer’s Disease.

The common link between all these diseases is the discovery that they involve an increased inflammatory burden with the body producing C-Reactive Proteins (CRPs) in response.

Moderate to severe levels of gum disease is closely associated with increased CRPs to the point of being predictive of risk factors for all these diseases and there is strong reason to believe that gum disease is a precursor to all these diseases.

Most people know about plaque around the teeth and gums. This is a bacterial Biofilm and the constant build-up below the gums that occurs in gum disease is a huge and continuous source of bacteria associated with raised CRPs.

Treating gum disease significantly reduces risk of all of these systemic diseases and markedly improves quality of life as well as potentially increasing life-expectancy.

Only your Dentist can diagnose gum disease (Periodontal Disease) and regular Active Maintenance visits for detailed examination by your Dentist along with professional cleaning by your Hygienist is a vital part of lowering your risk of these serious diseases some of which are life-threatening.

Treating Periodontal Disease is far easier and more predictable than treating the effects of these associated diseases.

Even if you’re not very concerned at having perfect teeth, your regular Hygiene visits just may save your life.

Future Dental caters for assessment of your risks from gum disease.

FAQs

Why is it important to limit my sugar intake?

It is important as each time you eat foods with sugar, you are basically feeding the bacteria in your mouth. This can eventually cause tooth decay.

How can I make brushing fun for my child?

We recommend playing one of their favourite songs to make them enjoy brushing their teeth. Also, don’t forget to have a song that goes for around 2 minutes as this will encourage them to not take shortcuts with their brushing.

Why should I chew sugar-free gum?

By chewing sugar-free gum, you are helping to prompt your mouth to produce more saliva, which can neutralise acid attacks from decay.

What causes dry mouth and bad breath?

Numerous dental issues can lead to a dry mouth, and a dry mouth can lead to bad breath. The condition xerostomia or dry mouth is caused by a lack of saliva in your mouth, which makes it harder for your food to break down and digest foods which leads to bad breath.

A combination of bad breath and a dry mouth can also be due to prolonged use of certain medications and drugs. If this is a persistent problem you’re facing, talk to a dental professional about it.

How do I prevent coronavirus?

Practice social distancing by staying home as much as you can, wash your hands frequently with soap, making sure to wash in between your fingers and to wash for 20 seconds. Use hand sanitizer when out of the house. Wipe down any high-touch surfaces such as steering wheel, purse or wallet, money or credit cards, and door handles with disinfectant spray.

Browse the dental hygiene products we currently stock at Future Dental