Most people have no idea just how important their mouth is to their every day health. Long term issues with your teeth, gums, and mouth can lead to problems throughout your body — even possibly harming your heart! Still, folks have to be pushed in order to go about flossing and brushing their teeth despite the obvious benefits. If you are one of those folks then keep on reading. We pulled together 12 reasons to always brush your teeth for the sake of your health.
Keep your breath fresh.
When it comes right down to it we all are vain in a way and this extends, clearly, to how others perceive us. When you don’t regularly brush your teeth you are going to end up getting some pretty awful breath. The reason your breath gets awful is because there is a build up of bacteria that gives off an odor. Make sure to brush your teeth and your tongue at least twice a day in order to prevent bad breath and any sort of other dental emergency.
You’ll save money in the long run.
If you decide to opt out of regularly brushing your teeth you are going to end up racking up quite a few bills in your life. Not only will you need to invest in some sort of dental insurance but you’ll also probably end up paying out of pocket for cosmetic dentistry work in order to fix the problems that you left to fester. Don’t make the mistake of thing that problems won’t happen to you because eventually, in fact, they will.
Keep your gums healthy.
Looking past the aspect of aesthetics you should be taking care of your gums as much as possible. When you don’t brush your teeth regularly you end up with various problems that end up wrecking your mouth. When your gums are healthy they will be pink, firm, and wrap tightly around your teeth. If you have a child make sure to take care of their gums with child dental health insurance and keep them in tip top shape. Gum problems can spread and become very serious.
Get rid of teeth stains.
Pretty much everything that you put in your mouth will end up having an effect on the coloration of your teeth. Acidic foods, cigarettes, and almost any drink will result in the discoloration of your teeth. Now, you may have great low cost health insurance but that won’t help you for cosmetic issues. Instead of relying on individual health insurance you should instead invest in yourself: regularly brush your teeth to get these stains removed. Toothpaste and toothbrushes are mildly abrasive and they help to remove debris that cause stains.
Protect your heart by brushing your teeth.
If you are focusing on losing weight with some sort of weight loss program you are probably doing it in order to protect your body from degradation as well as look good. You should do the same thing by brushing your teeth. If you allow your teeth to get bad enough you can actually have bacteria make its way into your blood. Once this bacteria is in your bloodstream it can actually increase your potential for a stroke or even a heart attack. Our point is simple: treat your tooth brushing routine just as well as your weight loss diet.
Keep your smile bright.
If you are single or even in a relationship you will want to have a nice bright smile to show off. When you first meet people they tend to quickly evaluate you, subconsciously, by judging your smile. A poorly taken care of mouth, replete with discolored gums and broken down teeth, is a way for people to quickly get an idea as to your hygiene habits. Put yourself above the rest by keeping your smile clean and healthy. Besides, who wants to kiss someone with terrible breath?
Prevent your chances of diabetes.
No, we aren’t talking about how you dig into those chocolate holiday gift baskets every year. Instead, we are talking about how broken down teeth and the ensuing gum disease can lead to an increase for the potential of diabetes. Diabetes is far from a minor problem as it can become deadly over time. Gum disease will begin to prevent you from controlling the glucose in your blood and this in turn leads to diabetes. So to keep this simple: take care of your diet and take care of your mouth and diabetes probably won’t be a problem for you!
Toothpaste can protect your teeth even when you aren’t brushing.
We sort of think of brushing our teeth as an immediate action without giving much thought to what it does for us at a later date. In actuality, brushing your teeth is part of creating a shield for your teeth throughout the day. Most toothpaste will have fluoride in it as well as other protective elements. These elements help to protect your teeth from the acid that ends up getting released by the buildup of plaque, thus preventing some problems down the line.
Keep your mind healthy.
It may seem like a stretch to some people but the fact is simple, and scary: if you don’t take care of your gums then you could see a very real increase in your risk of getting dementia as you age. Dementia is a devastating disease that not only affects you but everyone else around you. Poor gum care has been shown in scientific studies to lead to an increase of your risk for dementia by up to an astounding 40%! if you could prevent dementia by taking three minutes out of your day, wouldn’t you do it? The answer is obvious and that should tell you something.
Protect your children.
If you are planning on having a child in the future then you had better get to taking care of your teeth, gums, and mouth. Poor oral healthcare can lead to some pretty damning aspects for those who are trying to conceive. Gum disease has been shown in scientific studies to increase the risk of premature birth. Premature birth, of course, leads to a lower birth weight and that opens up a whole can of danger for all parties involved. You also run the risk of potentially reducing your ability to conceive with impotence being a very possible side effect.
Brushing your teeth is a cheap and easy preventative maintenance technique.
There are a lot of things that you can do for your body to help set you up for healthy living. However, some diseases just don’t care how healthy you are. As far as staving away many of the illnesses we listed above, brushing your teeth is an easy and cheap way to get this done. Why not practice an easy and affordable form of preventative maintenance when it could very possibly end up saving your life or, at the very least, saving your bank account?
You will feel better because of it.
There is something so deeply satisfying about brushing your teeth before bed. Sure, it may be a little bit of a pain to sit there for 90 seconds while you scrub your mouth but that is such a small price to pay. When it comes down to it you will end up enjoying your fresh breath as well as the confidence that comes with a gleaming smile. The impact that a confident smile can have on both you and the people around you is just devastating. You won’t have to smile with your mouth closed and you won’t have to be embarrassed about getting caught in pictures with your teeth showing. Isn’t that worth it for such a small price to pay?