Before you read any further, take a selfie or find a mirror to look at your smile. Pay particular attention to your gums.
Do they look pink, or are they redder in color? Do they feel firm or do they appear to be swollen?
Last, think about the last time you flossed. Did your gums bleed or not?
Healthy gums look pink, feel firm, and do not bleed when you brush or floss them. If your gums look red or swollen or do bleed, there’s a good chance that you have a gum infection.
Fortunately for patients in and around Shorewood, IL, treating gum disease is one of the many dental services we offer. To mark Gum Disease Awareness Month, we want to discuss how we can improve your gum health and why healthy gums are beneficial for you.
To schedule an appointment or to learn more about our care options, call Shorewood Family Dental Care at 815-725-5991.
Show Your Gums Some Love
If you want a healthy smile, then you need healthy gums. Those red, swollen, and/or bleeding gums can quickly become much worse. In the advanced stages, gum disease can lead to lingering bad breath, sore or tender gums, receding gums, and missing teeth.
Assuming you don’t want those things to continue, we encourage you to take steps to prevent it from happening. Or, we encourage you to seek help as soon as you notice problems.
As far as preventive care, you just need to follow the ADA’s recommendation. Each day, you should brush your teeth twice for two minutes each time and floss between your teeth and gums. By doing both of these things, you will remove bacteria, plaque, and food particles can lead to gum disease and tooth decay. You also should make professional teeth cleanings and exams part of your oral care routine.
If you do have symptoms of periodontal disease, this gives our team time to catch in in the early stages. This makes treatment easier to handle, more effective, and less expensive as well.
Treating Gum Disease & Getting Your Gums Back In Shape
If you do develop gum disease, you won’t be alone. Conservative estimates are that between 70 and 80 percent of people will have some kind of gum infection during their lives. In fact, nearly half of American adults have advanced gum disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
At Shorewood Family Dental Care, we offer basic and advanced techniques for gum disease treatments.
Many times the first step is a procedure called scaling and root planing. Think of this as a deep teeth cleaning, involving additional work that what you would receive during a normal dental checkup. Through this process, a member of our team will remove plaque and tartar from the roots of your teeth. Then we’ll smooth out the surface of your teeth, which helps your gums reattach.
To remove infected gum tissue, we can use our dental laser. This is good for you since it means you won’t need to have that infected tissue removed with a scalpel. The laser evaporates the bad tissue while sealing and preserving more of your healthy tissue. This greatly reduces bleeding, and stitches usually aren’t required (as they would be with gum surgery).
What’s Good For Your Gums Is Good For Your Smile
Your gums play an important role in your oral and overall health. Protecting them helps you protect your teeth. Let us help you with gum disease prevention or treat any problems you may be having. Call our Shorewood, IL dental office at 815-725-5991 or contact us online to request an appointment soon.
