Mistakes We Make When Caring For Our Mouth
It’s a morning routine familiar for many of us: Get that mouth clean immediately after breakfast by using a harsh toothpaste applied by an abrasive toothbrush, followed by a rinse with a mouthwash so strong it makes you wince.
Dr. Kami Hoss winces, too, when he hears patients describe these habits.
They’re some of the reasons why so many people have poor oral health, which in turn affects all other aspects of their health, from physical to mental, the dentist writes in his book, “If Your Mouth Could Talk: An In-Depth Guide to Oral Health and Its Impact on Your Entire Life.”
“Statistically, our mouths are incredibly unhealthy right now as a society. With all these advancements in science and technology and medicine, you would think at this point dentists wouldn’t have anything to do,” Hoss, who is the co-founder of The Super Dentists in San Diego, California, told TODAY.
“But oral health hasn’t gotten any better in the last 30 years… the majority of our population has oral diseases, so that means that what we’re currently doing is not working.”
Dental caries, also known as tooth decay, is the most common noncommunicable disease on the planet, according to the World Health Organization.
In the U.S., about half of adults have some form of gum disease, with that number rising to 70% for Americans who are over 65, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted.
The biggest problem is that people either neglect their mouth or go to the other extreme by disinfecting and sterilizing it to such a degree that they disrupt the balance of the oral microbiome, Hoss said.
Just like our gut, the mouth contains good and bad bacteria — billions of microbes in all. Disrupt this delicate balance — by using a product that kills all the bacteria in your mouth, for example — and problems can arise, he noted.
What is good oral health?
Hoss defined it as having a balanced oral microbiome as well as the right growth and development of the mouth, which leads to correct airways, a correct bite and a balanced-looking face. A healthy mouth can increase life expectancy by up to 10 years, he noted in his book. But if something goes wrong, resulting in an unhealthy mouth, it can impact everything about a person’s well-being, including mental health.