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Here Are 32 Good Reasons for Dental Hygiene

If there is a common thread that connects a Florida Dentist and the forensic scientists who study the remains found in shipwrecks off the coast of Florida it may be dental floss.

Florida has designated ten shipwrecks as public parks open to scuba exploration. This unique park system has been studied as an archeological group spanning hundreds of years.

One commonality in archeological records is that the longest surviving organic matter in the human body are the teeth. Scientists have found that cavities and tooth loss became prevalent in man at about the same time that he turned from a hunter-gatherer society toward an agrarian one.

The principal crop identified with this occurrence in North America is maize--or corn. This would indicate that the starches, primarily in grains, which the body converts into sugars; are the primary cause of tooth decay and gum disease. Knowing this, how can you not floss?

Back in the days when man relied on hunting for most of his food he also didn’t eat with modern flatware. At that time the incisors, or front teeth, played a more major role by cutting through tough wild meat. The cuspids and bicuspids served to tear meat from the bone. Without these twenty upper and lower front teeth, an early human’s chances for survival would have been greatly reduced. Today we still need our front teeth but could survive relying on a blender to yield a soft, balanced diet. Now we think more in terms of cosmetic and therefore social reliance on our front teeth.

Thorough cleaning and semiannual check ups can prevent decay and periodontal disease which loosen teeth so that they could simply fall out. Tooth brushing after meals and rinsing the mouth with water after snack or soda consumption go a long way to saving that socially important smile.

The eight molars set into the upper and lower jaw masticate, or chew and blend food with saliva, actually beginning the digestive process. Without this chewing we would loose some of the taste of our food even if we were able to swallow or digest without doing so.

Finally, the four wisdom teeth are treated as a great encumbrance to modern man. In early man the mandible was larger and allowed for an easier fit of these late developing molars. For that earlier stage of development this extra set of back teeth probably replaced molars which had been worn away from years of use.

Today jaws are smaller and the presence of wisdom teeth is more of a problem since they tend to become decayed more easily and crowd other teeth. It has become a rite of passage in fact when at about the age of 19 these teeth are usually removed.

So, there’s 32 reasons. Twenty front incisors, cuspids and bicuspids for a winning smile; eight molars for grinding; and four wisdom teeth form nature’s back up system.

Toothbrushes should be soft bristle only since hard bristles harm the tooth enamel. Brushes should be replaced after about three to four months of use or after a bout of the flu. Toothbrushes must never be shared with anyone.

Brush the teeth gently at a 45 degree angle starting at the outside and top of the teeth and moving downward. Rotate the brush inward to encompass the inside of the teeth and brush in the same manner. Repeat until all tooth surfaces are cleaned.

Apply some pressure to top teeth surfaces when brushing and brush the tongue or use a tongue scraper to clean. It’s best to brush after meals but a minimum of twice a day is recommended. Flossing is recommended once every 24 hours to interrupt the growth of plaque particularly under the gum line where brushes don’t reach. This prevents periodontal disease.

With regular care teeth should last a lifetime or longer.