2011年2月13日星期日

What About Preventive Dentistry?

By Mark Tennison


When paleontologists first uncover ancient human remains, the first thing they look at is their teeth. Why? Because through their teeth they are able to determine the diet, the sex and the age of the person in death. The importance of teeth transcends life itself and carries with it its importance through death as well. Which goes to show how much we need to have preventive dentistry to help us save our own teeth.

Have you ever noticed that among the old people of today, that is the newly old, which means those that just recently became senior citizens, the number of those with false teeth are smaller than the old people of, say, ten years ago? It's probably due to the advancement of dental procedures and diet. This is a good thing since it goes to show that more people are keeping their teeth longer than before. Just think, in the future, the only teeth that would get pulled out are not the decayed ones, but rather just wisdom teeth removal.

People say that we should take care of our teeth since it is the only set we will have. Now, technically this is false since during the course of our lives we get two sets of teeth. Milk teeth and permanent teeth. However, what they say about taking care of it is true. Since once our permanent teeth is gone, it is gone forever. This emphasizes the importance of brushing our teeth regularly and flossing daily. Otherwise, if we leave our teeth to rot, once they fall off, it stays off. Which is not a pleasant thing to happen.

Dentists get a bad rap of striking fear in the hearts of men. Which is a myth really. Personally, I once feared dentists, but after awhile I thought that what they do is mild compared to the other treatments or medical routines I get. One example is having a facial. As banal as that may sound, whenever I have one, I get teary eyed literally. Especially when they start cleaning the sides of the nose? The pain is unbearable, that the next time you go to a dentists you will feel that the pain there is really mild compared to the devilish facial.

All I am saying here is that, no matter how much you fear the dentist, you must steel yourself and visit him or her regularly for preventive dentistry. Once you lose your teeth, it is gone forever. Think of them as your pearls, come to think of it, they are more valuable than pearls. So brush daily and floss regularly. A life spent with a toothless smile is not a pleasant thing to happen. Visit your oral hygienist regularly and take care of them. If you need another reason to practice proper oral hygiene, remember this: heart disease has been linked to our own dental health.




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