| We all know about the basics of dental hygiene. From | | | | Of course, there's one other basic element to dental |
| a young age, we all have parents telling us to brush | | | | hygiene: Flossing! Those little fibers do more than just |
| our teeth before we go to bed. It goes without saying | | | | make your loved ones leave you alone about taking |
| that brushing our teeth is vital to the health of our teeth | | | | care of your teeth. They scrape away plaque and |
| and gums. Without a basic tooth brushing daily, plaque | | | | germs from parts of your mouth that would otherwise |
| will eat away at our teeth and infect our gums, causing | | | | be inaccessible to you. This is where a lot of the |
| some of the most common gum diseases that we | | | | damage to your teeth is done. By flossing once every |
| see on a day-to-day basis. However, brushing your | | | | single day, you help keep these negative effects at |
| teeth at night is something everyone over the age of 3 | | | | bay, freshening your breath and inviting good dental |
| should know is a requirement for basic health. | | | | health to your mouth. |
| Taking it a step further, most people brush their teeth | | | | One danger in attempting good dental hygiene |
| in the morning as well. This gets them off to a good | | | | practices is over-doing it. Now, brushing your teeth 3 to |
| start for the day with fresh breath, clean teeth, and a | | | | 4 times per day and flossing 1 to 2 times, while it might |
| shiny white smile. Really, though, if you want the | | | | be slightly overkill, is not dangerous in itself. If you use |
| ultimate in dental hygiene, you should consider brushing | | | | gentle techniques and practices, you can pretty much |
| your teeth 3 times per day. Adding in that second | | | | brush and floss all you want to without causing harm. |
| brushing to your mid-day activities helps prevent plaque | | | | The danger comes when you brush too hard or |
| from having the chance to bond to your teeth and | | | | damage the gums when you floss. This can actually |
| cause tooth decay and damage. | | | | cause gum disease and tooth damage! |