If you are a senior considering dental implants, you may have to worry about issues other dental patients don't have to think about. For example, you may need more time to recover after receiving your implants. My name is Jodi, and I've been working with seniors for years. I decided to create this blog to help the seniors I can't meet in person. In this space, I'm going to post entries on everything related to dental implants and seniors. From tips on flossing implants after arthritis has claimed some of your dexterity, to guiding you through the implants-vs-dentures debate, this blog is designed for you. Thanks for reading. I hope you find what you need!
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Getting your children to brush their teeth two times a day can often be difficult. After all, it's hardly the most entertaining of tasks, and children can find it hard to appreciate the need. Unfortunately, there are some issues that you should continue to watch out for even after your children have started to diligently brush their teeth each day, and one of those issues is brushing too hard.
It isn't at all unusual for children to brush their teeth a little more vigorously than they need to, but this is a bad habit that needs to be stopped. Though it might seem as if brushing hard would remove more plaque, you don't need to exert very much pressure at all to clean your teeth, and pushing down too hard can actually cause damage to the tooth enamel.
With that in mind, make sure you keep your eye out for these signs that your child is brushing too hard.
1. Spayed Bristles
No toothbrush will last forever; eventually, the bristles will become spayed out and fuzzy looking. However, you should really have replaced the toothbrush by the time this happens. If you're brushing with the proper amount of pressure, it should take a long time. If, on the other hand, you notice that the bristles of your child's toothbrush become spayed out very quickly, after only a few weeks, they're almost certainly brushing too hard.
2. Bent Neck
Take a closer look at your child's toothbrush. Does the neck seem abnormally bent backwards? If so, your child might have been brushing too hard. Ideally, you should never exert enough pressure during brushing to feel the neck of the toothbrush bending. You can also watch your children while they brush to ensure that this isn't happening.
3. Complaints of Sensitivity
Sensitive teeth can be caused by a whole host of factors, but children's teeth don't generally show signs of sensitivity. If they are brushing those teeth too hard, this may change. Because brushing too hard will damage the enamel, hot and cold temperatures will be more easily able to penetrate to the pulp, which is what causes that unpleasant feeling of sensitivity in the first place.
4. Bleeding Gums
One of the more serious issues that can arise because your child is brushing too vigorously is bleeding gums. The gums will be put under too much pressure, not just the teeth, and the aggravation that caused each night can cause the gums to recede or even bleed. If you notice that your child's gums are bleeding after they brush their teeth, you should take them to the dentist in any case. It could be due to bleeding gums, but it could also be something more serious.
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