Harmful Habits for Your Teeth

There are many habits most people have which are bad for the teeth and jaw- bad habits. Done consciously or unconsciously these can lead to expensive dental bills.

1. Nail Biting: This nervous, compulsive habit is more common in children and can lead to chipping of teeth. Keeping the lower jaw in forward position for prolonged time while nail-biting can put pressure on the jaw and lead to jaw dysfunction. Using bitter tasting habit breaking nail polish and stress reduction methods can help break this habit.

2. Biting on objects: Many a times we catch ourselves biting on end of pen or pencil when thinking about ideas. Constantly doing this can chip or deforms the edges of our teeth. Also, the germs and bacteria are introduced in the mouth, as these writing tools are not clean.

3. Brushing too hard: Brushing too hard or with a hard brush damages the enamel and gums, leading to sensitivity and weak teeth. Set 2 minutes for brushing and be gentle when cleaning your teeth. ADA Seal of Acceptance at the proper pressure. "Don't think 'scrub.' Think 'massage,".

4. Chewing on ice: Sounds fun but bad for your teeth. This can lead to cracks and chipping of your teeth. Drinking chilled beverages without ice and using straw is better than chewing on the ice.

5. Clenching and Grinding: This usually happens when we are stressed, anxious or have a improper bite/ teeth malocclusion. It can lead to cracking and chipping of teeth, jaw muscle soreness, dull headaches and jaw joint problems. Wearing a nightguard at night while sleeping, correcting your bite by doing Braces or Clear-Aligners can help with this problem.

6. Using teeth as tools: Most often we find ourselves using our teeth as pair of scissors to open a bag of chips, cutting clothing tags, cutting our nails and list goes on. When our hands are full, we use teeth as extra pair of hands to hold things for us. Doing so can crack, chip our teeth and is also bad for our jaw joint and can lead to expensive dental procedure.

7. Snacking: Constant grazing on junk food can lead to leftover food/ sugar in mouth, on which the bacteria feast on and produces acid. This acid can erode your enamel, cause gum disease. Minimize on snacking junk food, eating healthy snacks low in sugar and carbs and drinking and rinsing with water is of great help.

8. Heavy drinking, smoking, using tobacco products: can lead to tooth decay, gum disease, oral and other forms of cancer. Developing healthy habits pays. Call us at 408-725-1536 or email us at info@hillsdentalgroup.com or schedule an appointment with us today, we will love to partner-up in your journey to HAPPY HEATHY MOUTH and LIFE.