Dental Care: Taking Care of Sensitive Teeth

As millions of people all around the world know, sensitive teeth can make life in general a nightmare.  Sensitive teeth comes with pain and discomfort that can make eating or drinking your favorite foods a painful experience.  Although you may suffer from sensitive teeth, you can rest assured that they can be treated.

Normally, this condition presents tooth pain after drinking cold liquid, eating hot or cold foods, or breathing cold air.  If the pain becomes too much to bear, you should immediately see your dentist, as the nerve of your tooth could be exposed.  Normally, sensitive teeth starts when the gums begin to pull away from the teeth.  With the gums being a protective blanket, they cover and protect the teeth’s roots.  When the gums recede and pull away, the roots have no protection, and therefore they will be exposed.

The exposed root tips contain small tubules that lead directly to the nerves of the teeth.  Whenever pressure, hot, or cold elements travel down the tubules, it will trigger the nerves and result in pain.  Those who don’t have sensitive teeth will have their gums covering the tubules, which prevents these types of things from happening.

The idea here is to stop tooth sensitivity and keep the gums healthy.  If you reduce the pressure you use when brushing your teeth, you’ll find that your gums will remain healthy.  When taught to brush their teeth, most people are instructed to use a lot of force.  While this can get the teeth clean, it will also tear at the gums, which can lead to sensitive teeth.  If you have sensitive teeth now, you should try using an electric toothbrush such as the Sonicare advanced.

Although you may have sensitive teeth now, there are ways you can help to improve your gums and your teeth.  There are several toothpastes out there on the market that contain potassium nitrate, which helps to reduce pain and discomfort associated with sensitivity.  Although there are several toothpastes to choose from, Sensodyne is the preferred.  It’s recommended by dentists as being the best, simply because it affects the nerve of the tooth and stops the pain where it starts.

Mouthwash can also help tooth sensitivity, providing it contains fluoride.  You can also ask your dentist which mouthwash he recommends, as there are several to choose from.  Scope is a great brand to use, as it offers you plenty of fluoride without any alcohol.  Unlike Listerine, Scope won’t burn your mouth when you use it.  It will leave you with a clean feeling, and get your mouth and teeth completely clean - killing millions of bacteria.

If you start using fluoride toothpaste such as Sensodyne and mouthwash, you’ll notice a bit improvement in your teeth and gums.  The sensitivity will begin going away, giving you almost immediate relief.  When you brush, make sure you brush gently, and avoid using any type of force, as it will always cause your gums to recede again.

In the event that using Sensodyne and fluoride mouthwash doesn’t help, you should ask your dentist about other options available to you.  Your dentist will know what will help you, so you shouldn’t hesitate to ask.  Your dentist will know how to eliminate your sensitivity once and for all, and how to prevent it from coming back.  Tooth sensitivity is something that many of us have to deal with - although there are ways that you can fight back and prevent the pain and discomfort associated with sensitivity from making your life harder than it has to be.