Your teeth may feel fine, but it’s still important to see the dentist regularly because problems can exist without you knowing. Your smile’s appearance is important, and your dentist can help keep your smile healthy and looking beautiful. With so many advances in dentistry, you no longer have to settle for stained, chipped, missing, or misshapen teeth. Today’s dentists offer many treatment choices that can help you smile with confidence, including:

• Professional teeth whitening
• Fillings that mimic the appearance of natural teeth
• Tooth replacement and full smile makeovers

Your toothbrush will eventually wear out, especially if you are brushing your teeth twice a day for two to three minutes each time. Your dentist recommends that adults and children change their toothbrush every three months. If you are using an electric toothbrush, be sure to read the directions because you may not need to change toothbrush heads as frequently. Patients with gum disease are encouraged to change their toothbrush every four to six weeks to keep any bacteria from spreading. After brushing, rinse your toothbrush with hot water to kill germs and keep the bristles clean. If you’ve been sick, be sure to change your toothbrush as soon as possible.

Dry mouth can be a symptom of many different problems and can happen as you get older. Quite often it is a side effect of medication – especially heart, blood pressure and depression tablets.

If you have a dry mouth, this can be very uncomfortable and it can make eating certain foods very difficult.

Many prescription medicines can cause a dry mouth, if you are taking any regular medication from your doctor, it may be worth discussing these symptoms with him to see if there is an alternative that does not have the same side effects.

If you think that you are suffering with a dry mouth, you should discuss this with your dental team. They may recommend one of the many products that are available over-the-counter to help to alleviate this problem.