Most patients look after their teeth well. But some ideas come up so often in the chair that they are worth putting straight.
1. "Brushing harder gets my teeth cleaner"
Plaque is soft. It comes away with gentle brushing. Scrubbing hard, especially with a hard brush, wears down the enamel and pushes the gums back, which leads to sensitivity. If the bristles on your brush splay out within a few weeks, you are pressing too hard. An electric toothbrush with a pressure sensor is a good fix.
2. "My gums bleed, so I should stop flossing"
Bleeding gums are usually a sign of inflammation caused by plaque sitting along the gum line. Stopping cleaning there makes it worse, not better. Keep cleaning gently between your teeth every day and the bleeding normally settles within a week or two. If it does not, book a check-up, as it can be an early sign of gum disease.
3. "Baby teeth don't matter, they fall out anyway"
Some back baby teeth stay in place until around age 12. Decay in them can cause pain and infection, make eating difficult, and affect the adult teeth developing underneath. Baby teeth also hold the space for the adult teeth. Losing them early can mean crowding later.
4. "Whitening ruins your enamel"
Professional whitening, carried out with gels supplied by a dentist after an examination, is safe for healthy teeth. Some people get temporary sensitivity, which settles. The real risk is whitening from beauty salons and unregulated online kits, which is illegal in the UK and can burn the gums. Our guide on teeth whitening in the UK explains the rules.
5. "Nothing hurts, so nothing's wrong"
Decay and gum disease are usually painless in the early stages. By the time a tooth hurts, the problem is often bigger and the treatment more involved. That is the whole point of regular check-ups: finding things while they are small, quick and cheaper to fix.
Have you heard one we have not covered? Send it to us and we may answer it in a future post.