While many Australians may not know it, the Australian Dental Association has selected the first full week of August as Australia’s Dental Health Week.
This week is dedicated to increasing awareness of dental health all across Australia. This year, that week will be celebrated from the 5th to the 11th.
Smiles Nambour suggests you take this week as a chance to evaluate the oral hygiene and dental health of yourself and your loved ones. This is even more important if they are children or seniors.
This year, the theme is “How’s Your Oral Health Tracking.” It is an attempt to make us consider if we’re ‘on track’ with our oral hygiene and think about how we keep track of our oral hygiene habits.
At Smiles Nambour, we believe these are great questions, because if you can answer them thoroughly, you may be in great shape for dental health.
But we also recognise that for some of our patients, tracking is more complicated than for others. Notably, our younger and older patients may have some trouble tracking their oral hygiene.
Let’s take a look at specific issues these age-groups face, and what can be done to help ‘track’ these patients.
Dental Health Week and Children
Children need to be taught the reasons oral hygiene is essential and how it is achieved.
This makes Dental Health Week a great chance to introduce children to the importance of oral hygiene and dental health.
The Dental Health Week website features a variety of information and posters that can be used, for children or adults, to learn more about oral hygiene.
Check out their PDFs and posters to learn more about oral hygiene! Poster topics include dental health for children, as well as posters focused on the dangers of acidic and sugary drinks.
The information also contains helpful hints for adults who are introducing children to oral hygiene:
- Start a child’s oral hygiene early. Brush gums even before a tooth appears.
- Make brushing entertaining with music, videos, or smartphone apps.
- Spit out excess toothpaste, do not rinse out the mouth with water.
- Don’t use too much toothpaste. A dab is all you need.
- Start a child’s dental visits early. Before age one, or as soon as the first tooth erupts.
- Be positive when visiting the dentist; kids pick up on how adults act.
The other thing an adult can do is to demonstrate oral planning and tracking, increasing the chances they will practice good oral hygiene.
As to tracking children, mark their progress on a calendar, with stars, or using a chart, and give rewards!
Keeping seniors on track
Tracking oral health is also key for seniors. Elderly Dental reports that people with gum disease have twice the likelihood of developing cardiac disease or having a stroke.
Additionally, bacterial buildup in the mouth is linked to higher rates of pneumonia and diabetes. Oral cancer is another disease that becomes more threatening as we age.
For oral cancer, the dental office is the best answer. Even seniors with no teeth should have regular dental visits because they can also develop oral cancer.
Dentures, too, can cause damage to the mouth. Obviously, these all are diseases of great importance to seniors.
If controlling oral health can also control them, it only seems sensible to keep tight track of your oral hygiene.
On the other hand, if a senior loses track of oral hygiene, very typical dental issues can become dangerous.
Here are some problems that seniors must be alert for:
- Darkened teeth
- Dry mouth
- Root decay
- Gum disease
- Tooth loss
- Uneven jawbone
- Denture-induced stomatitis
- Thrush
- Oral lesions
What happens that makes seniors prone to these oral problems?
First, regular oral hygiene becomes more difficult and less effective as manual dexterity decreases.
Second, memory issues can get in the way of oral hygiene habits that might once have been as regular as clockwork.
Other aspects come into play as well; retirees often work on a tighter budget, and with less insurance, which makes it a more significant decision to visit the dentist.
Also, access to transportation can become limited, again making trips to the dental office more difficult.
And yet, because the need for oral health is more serious than ever, it is critically important that seniors track their oral hygiene closely.
If for any reason, a senior cannot wholly monitor their own oral hygiene, it falls to loved ones or caregivers to do that job.
Dentistry at Smiles Nambour
Smiles Nambour is the ideal choice for dental care in the Nambour region. We offer top-notch dental services of all kinds to patients from young to old!
Our highly trained staff is dedicated to providing you with personalised, quality dental care.
Smiles Nambour offers a complete array of general, restorative, and cosmetic dental services for you and your loved ones.
A visit to Smiles Nambour is an investment in your dental health and an attractive smile!
Dental Health Week Promotion
$199 for Check-up, Clean and Full Mouth X-rays for the month of August
FREE Consultation or FREE Second Opinion
FREE Consultation or FREE Second Opinion on 5th to 11th August 2019 to celebrate Dental Health Week!
Senior Discount
10% senior discount on all the treatments
Call us today on (07) 5441 4438 or visit us at Shop 4, 2-4 Ann street, Nambour QLD 4560.