Newton D Johnson BDS(Hons) FDSRCS
YOUR SMILE - HOLLYWOOD or STONEHENGE?
We all want healthy and white teeth. Sadly dental diseases
remain a significant problem in the UK where tooth decay and gum disease
are all too common. There is some good news in that we are seeing a reduction
in decay in younger people. However, we have evidence that there is an
increase in what we call abrasion and erosion of teeth, that is, the rapid
wearing away of tooth tissue, not caused by decay, but by harsh brushing
and toothpastes that are too abrasive.
Many of us long for a brighter smile as we hate the
staining of our teeth. In many cases staining is due to less that perfect
cleaning on our part coupled with the stains that come from tea, coffee,
red wine and so on. Fillings in our front teeth can also degrade over
time and can badly stain.
Do we clean our teeth properly? If asked, almost everyone
will respond by saying, 'YES, I do clean my teeth well each day’.
If we next ask, 'How long do you spend brushing and cleaning your teeth
each day?’ The overwhelming majority of people will insist they
spend over two minutes brushing. It is always rewarding (and often highly
comical) to invite people to be timed on their own brushing technique.
The individual under timing is always astonished! They begin the experiment
with confidence, brushing away with gusto! After just TWENTY seconds that
initial confidence looks rather shaky. After thirty seconds they begin
to have an alarmed took and by forty five seconds many have a desperation
look, longing to be told they can now stop brushing. The realisation then
hits home: they now know that they have actually NEVER cleaned their teeth
for more than twenty-five seconds!
To cleanse the mouth properly takes at least two minutes,
cleaning and polishing each tooth and in particular in-between the teeth
areas. Enter a new problem for many - TOOTH BRUSH ABRASION! In our keenness
to achieve a white smile many of us are scrubbing away, wearing down our
precious enamel, spending the short time actually harming the teeth instead
of protecting them! (see Figure One demonstrating early loss of enamel
due to scrubbing). Some individuals, over the years, achieve devastating
loss of tooth substance, (see Figure Two), where this chap had literally
brushed his teeth away! No decay here, simply abrasion.
If you purchased a beautiful porcelain figure, costing
several hundred pounds, I am certain you would not get out the wire wool
and the scouring powder to scrub the porcelain each day! Yet, in effect,
this is what many of us do each day with our teeth in an effort to get
them clean.
When we visit the chemist shop or supermarket we are
surrounded by many brands of toothpaste offering us the promise of whiter
teeth. Sadly, many of these toothpastes contain harsh abrasives in the
form of silica (think of using scouring agents on the expensive porcelain
figure). Yes, the abrasive action will remove staining, but at what long-term
cost? Abrasive action cleans, but at the same time will also remove the
'glaze' that tooth enamel has and the abrasive cleaning will introduce
micro scratches that will readily stain again. The cycle has to be repeated:
further staining needing further cleaning and even more abrasion to the
tooth surface.
After the passage of time a significant amount of tooth surface is abraded
to an extent where all the enamel is lost, especially at the gum line,
exposing the sensitive root dentine. This tissue is softer than enamel
and so is abraded more easily, and having lost the protection of enamel
this root dentine can be highly sensitive to the cold and to sweet things.
So, using 'whitening' toothpastes containing abrasives is NOT a good idea.
WHAT IS THE SOLUTION? To begin with, visit your Dentist / Hygienist on
a regular basis. They can give you the best help and advice regarding
stain removal and tooth whitening. Next, in your home care, take your
time polishing and cleansing your teeth and gums (at least TWO minutes
a day is thought to be essential for health). Never use a hard brush and
focus on POLISHING each tooth, all around, inside, and outside, front,
back and top. Strive to CLEANSE the spaces or gaps in-between each tooth,
(special interdental brushes, dental tape or floss are the best way of
achieving this). Finally, always use NON-ABRASIVE toothpaste. Select one
that improves your oral health as well as safely whitening your teeth.
Look out for those with the most number of active ingredients, in particular
products that offer tooth whitening by non-abrasive means coupled with
ingredients to help ward off tooth decay and gum disease and even can
help eliminate bad breath. These special pastes can remove staining by
enzyme action and other ingredients that can break-up staining, without
the need for abrasives.
In researching the whole of the market, there is only
one product that has ALL the ingredients to promote oral health - 'JANINA
OPAL LIQUID TOOTHPASTE SPRAY. This contains no less that 14 active ingredients
(most other brands contain just two or three active ingredients), and
the JANINA product is capable of fighting tooth decay, prevents the build
up of plaque and tarter, freshens the breath and whitens the teeth, all
WITHOUT abrasion!
Look out for the JANINA products and try them, you will be very impressed.
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