When you look in the mirror every morning, do you look at your teeth and gums once in a while?
If you have teeth that are looking a bit too long and you have less gum than usual, what do you think is causing the sudden recession?
Watch when you brush your teeth, do you brush with a soft bristle toothbrush or one that is so hard that it causes bleeding? Hard brushing is not a good brushing. If you think that brushing hard allows you to lessen the time you brush, you are not doing your mouth any favors.
There is another reason for your gum recession…bad habits! If you are taking drugs, whether prescription or illegal; drugs do have an adverse effect on your gums and teeth. The chemicals in your body will change the way you metabolize and will cause your saliva to either decrease or cause plaque and calculus. We all know what smoking does to our lungs, what we don’t always think about is that your mouth is the first contact of the cigarette smoke and chemicals. Your gums are the first signal that there is something very wrong with your health.
Even your hormones influence your gum health. When you are pregnant, you have a good chance of having pregnancy gingivitis. Your poor nutrition is a sure shot that your gums will appear pale and unhealthy. There is such a thing as cancer in the mouth, tongue, and gums.
Unfortunately, there are diseases that will be a huge factor of gum recession. Diabetes, HIV are just two of the diseases that will definitely have an effect on your gums.
So what do we do?
The best thing we can do is to make an appointment to see your doctor and hygienist at Wilshire Smile Studio! Together, we will figure out what and how to stop the damage and get you back to good health.
If you have any questions or need to make your appointment, please feel free to contact our office by telephone (323) 336-8478 or email us at: smiles@dentistlosangeles.com