Page 59 - Southdown Dental Implant Book

58 | GETYOURSMILEBACK:EVERYTHINGYOUNEEDTOKNOW... “high maintenance.” You don’t have to do anything very different than you do with natural teeth. A good routine of basic oral hygiene is sufficient. For example: You have to brush: as you may already know, plaque on your teeth allows bacteria to breed – and bacteria leads to infection. So if you let plaque build up on your teeth, clip-bar, etc. (basically anywhere in your mouth), you’ve opened the door to infection and invited it to come right in! Brushing is your best defense against bacteria. You don’t have to be overly vigorous: a simple routine of brushing for two (full) minutes in the morning, after every meal if you can, and before sleep will do the trick. *Note: Your saliva naturally cleans your mouth – but while you’re sleeping, it doesn’t clean your mouth as effectively... so brushing in the morning is very important, in order to get rid of any extra plaque that builds up overnight. Finally, the added benefit of brushing regularly is that it stimulates your gums every day, which keeps