With COVID-19 sweeping across the nation, dental offices have had to close to everything aside from dental emergencies. This means that many regular dental checkups and cleanings have been canceled or postponed. So what should you do if your appointment has been canceled? Dr. David J. Weinstock, a dentist in Bala Cynwyd, PA, offers some tips.
Make Sure Your Appointment is Rescheduled
Just because it got canceled doesn’t mean it should be something you skip. It’s important to get your bi-annual cleaning as close to that original date as possible. Someone from our office may have already reached out to you to reschedule. If not, call us or use our online scheduling tool. Make sure your smile is taken care of!
Keep an Oral Healthcare Routine at Home
Especially if you’re missing a scheduled cleaning, you want to make sure you’re taking care of your teeth when you’re at home. You want to prevent the chance of tooth decay or gum disease. We know that it’s hard when your normal routine is upended. You’re trying to focus on working from home or keeping kids entertained, and it’s easy for things to slip through the cracks. But keeping an oral healthcare routine is essential.
Set alarms or reminders on your phone for mornings and evenings so that you’re brushing your teeth at least twice a day. This also can serve as a reminder for the rest of the people in your household. It’s not a bad thing to brush more often either. If it helps you remember, brush and floss after each meal. This helps get food particles out from between and around your teeth quickly as well.
Watch What You Eat and Drink
It can be hard to keep a strictly healthy diet during this time. It’s okay to want comfort food, and that’s not usually the healthiest. Grocery stores are also offering limited hours due to the pandemic. They’re struggling with keeping all of the usual items on the shelf since people keep coming to stock up. However, there are some easy things you can implement in your diet to help.
First, avoid excess sugar as much as possible. Sugar is one of the biggest enemies of your smile. Harmful oral bacteria use sugar as a main food source. Then, they release an acidic byproduct that wears away at the enamel on your teeth. This is what leads to tooth decay and dental cavities, as well as things such as root canals if you let it go.
Also, drink water as your main beverage every day. Water benefits almost every part of your health, including oral health. If you’re drinking tap water, it’s usually fortified with fluoride to strengthen your tooth enamel. Even if it’s bottled water, it’s great at making sure your mouth stays hydrated. This is needed to help flush away sugars and food particles from your teeth.
Your Dentist in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania
Make sure the stress of the pandemic hasn’t gotten to your smile. Call us or schedule an appointment online. We hope to see your smile in our office soon!