New Year’s Resolutions: Take Care of Your Teeth
It’s a new year, and like many of you, I’ve overeaten during the holidays. So, now I’m on my diet to take off those extra pounds.
When people diet, they often do well for about a month, and then fall back to some bad eating habits. This is known as recidivism – receding back to old habits that caused the problem in the first place.
The Importance of Cleanings and Flossing in 2015
Well, recidivism occurs in dentistry in the form of not properly taking care of your teeth, or specifically, not flossing daily. Some patients can get away with very little home care because of the inflammatory response of the body to plaque. But, this is not the norm. Patients who have periodontal disease have to really stay on top of their home care. After a deep cleaning (a first treatment for periodontal disease) and/or periodontal surgery (necessary if the deep cleaning did not give the desired improvement), patients frequently fall off the wagon on flossing. It takes a concerted effort to train yourself into good habits.
So, it’s a new year and time to try again. Flossing isn’t difficult but you have to make time to do it!