July 21, Kathmandu- Psychologists say that one of the first things you notice about a person is their smile. You can have a good smile if you have properly maintained your dental hygiene. So, we contacted Dr Anup Ojha, a dentist from Pokhara to help you maintain great dental health.

Q: What is dental hygiene?

A: Dental Hygiene is the practice of keeping your mouth and teeth healthy and free from diseases.

Q: How can you prevent bad breath?

A: To prevent bad breath at first, we must reduce the amount intake of bad breath causing agents in foods like garlic, onions, canned tuna etc.

For home remedies, you must brush your teeth twice a day and clean your tongue while brushing your teeth. Floss in between the teeth. Change your toothbrush every 2-3 months. Drink 2.5-3 litres of water every day.

Bad breath might be caused by a disease on your mouth or teeth or infection in one’s gums so visit a dentist if you have bad breath.

Q: How easy is it to maintain dental hygiene?

A: It’s actually quite easy. Like I said before, Brush your teeth twice a day after meals. Go for a regular checkup every 6 months if possible or at least once a year. Do these and you’ll easily maintain good dental hygiene.

Q: What is tooth decay and what causes tooth decay?

A: After we ate our meals small bits of food remain on our teeth or in between our teeth. Brushing may not properly clean our teeth so sometimes tiny bits of food remain even after brushing, it’s because we don’t give enough time to brush teeth and do it with incorrect techniques as well as most people don’t do floss. After a while with help of bacteria, acid starts to develop which causes our teeth to decay.

Q:  How can you prevent tooth decay?

A: We must rinse our mouth after every meal and also should brush our teeth twice a day after our main meals. But we also must visit the dentist once a year for regular dental check-ups.

Q: What is tooth sensitivity and what causes it?

A: The feeling of pain sensation in your teeth while having hot or cold things is tooth sensitivity. Some people even experience tooth pain while breathing. From research, it was found that most people have tooth sensitivity while eating cold food. Tooth sensitivity is caused by various factors. It can be caused by brushing teeth with too much force, tooth decade near the gum line, the recession of gums, grinding your teeth while sleeping, cracked teeth, caries nears the fillings, using of tooth whitening products.

Q: How can you treat tooth sensitivity?

A: You can treat it by brushing your teeth with desensitizing toothpaste & mouthwash and if this doesn’t work consult a dentist.

Q: What changes should we bring in our lifestyle to have good dental hygiene?

A: There are many things we can change so I’ll list them:

• Brush your teeth daily and don’t forget to floss.
• Don’t forget to clean your tongue while brushing.
• Quit smoking if you smoke.
• Go for a regular dental checkup at least once a year.
• Don’t drink carbonated waters and quit drinking alcohol.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Use toothpaste containing fluoride to brush your teeth.
• If you chew nicotine then quit it.
• Don’t eat too much food containing too much sugar and acid.
• Use a soft brush to brush your teeth.