How awful! A dental appointment keeping you up at night? Do you have cold sweats just thinking about it? Do you have knots in your stomach when you approach the door of your dentist’s office? You may then suffer from dental phobia.
Phobias are extreme fears, anxieties experienced in the face of certain objects or very specific situations. Some of them, such as arachnophobia (fear of spiders), acrophobia (fear of heights) or agoraphobia (fear of public places or crowds), are better known to the general public.
What Is Xenophobia?
Dent phobia is the fear that some people feel at the thought of a visit to the dentist or the anxiety that they feel when approaching a simple routine appointment.
Do you have a very bad toothache, but still hesitate to go to the dentist? Do you have to muster up your courage to walk through the door of your dental clinic? Know that you are not alone!
Signs Of Dental Phobia
Here Are Some Signs That Could Help You Detect Your Dental Phobia:
- You are particularly nervous when approaching an appointment with your dentist;
- You neglect your routine visits;
- You constantly postpone your appointment for fear of seeing the dentist;
- You ignore your dental problems, even when they cause you great pain;
- Your heartbeat speeds up or you experience physical discomfort at the mere thought of having a dental procedure, even when it is a simple cleaning;
- You feel like you are literally losing control when it comes to dentistry.
What Are The Causes Of Dental Phobia?
It can happen that a bad past experience is at the origin of your dental phobia. Most often, this negative memory dates back to childhood. It is possible that a loved one or a member of your family has communicated their own dental phobia to you. Maybe it’s your fear of needles that makes you nervous when you visit the dentist. These fears are completely normal. Be aware, however, that dentists are very sensitive to your concerns and will do everything possible to reassure you.
If you happen to postpone your dental appointments because of your anxiety, be aware that these delays could bring you many other inconveniences and lead to a much more important intervention and, consequently, accentuate your stress even more.
In the long term, a lack of dental care can lead to serious chronic problems: bad breath, gingivitis, speech problems, etc. This is why it is important not to neglect your dental follow-ups.
Solutions To Overcome Your Fear
If you recognize yourself in the few introductory lines of this article, do not hesitate: talk to your dentist!
Although you may have some concerns about going to your dentist, know that he is the best person to help you with your phobia. He will certainly show empathy and will be even more attentive to your stress. Verbalizing your fear is the first step towards healing!
Dental Phobia In Children
Children may be even more prone than adults to feel anxious as they approach their visit to Le Dentist. However, there are several tactics that can help them overcome their fear.
As a parent, you can, a few days before the appointment, prepare your child by telling him about his next visit. He will know what to expect and won’t have any bad surprises.
You can also invite your child to be present during your own teeth cleaning. He will thus be able to observe and familiarize himself with the gestures of the dentist.
There is no embarrassment in feeling anxious about the dentist. Quite the contrary and it is important to talk to him about it.
Good Habits For White Teeth
Several healthy lifestyle habits will promote the whiteness of your smile. It is best to avoid cigarettes. It not only causes yellowing of the teeth, it also causes bad breath.
If you are an inveterate coffee addict, know that this addiction to your favorite nectar has a notorious impact on the color of your teeth. Indeed, coffee and tea stain the teeth considerably.
Foods That Promote White Teeth
Did you know that certain foods promote white teeth? Indeed, some raw vegetables such as carrots, celery or cauliflower polish the surface of the teeth when they are bitten. They also stimulate saliva production and are rich in water, which helps clean the mouth.
Yogurt and other dairy products contain certain nutrients that remove stains from the surface of the teeth.
Certain fruits, such as strawberries, bananas and apples are rich in malic acid, an element that contributes to oral health. Additionally, pineapple contains an enzyme that reduces stains and discoloration by breaking down a protein on the surface of the enamel.
Just like raw vegetables, seeds and nuts clean and whiten teeth with their abrasive texture.
Finally, baking soda, as we know today, has many beneficial properties and polishes the teeth without damaging them. You can therefore prioritize a baking soda-based toothpaste for your daily brushing.
Actions To Avoid
While we can only encourage you to adopt good lifestyle habits to maintain the health and whiteness of your teeth, we would also like to warn you against certain factors that could greatly affect the integrity of your teeth.
The Coal
Several companies offer charcoal-based toothpastes. If it can be effective in the short term, it could, in the long term, have very damaging effects for your teeth. Indeed, the activated carbon used in the composition of these toothpastes is very abrasive and could cause irreversible damage to your teeth, since it could damage your enamel and it does not have the property to regenerate.
If you still want to use this type of toothpaste, we recommend that you use it only once a month. This will avoid any inconvenience.
Although certain lifestyle habits promote immaculate teeth, you may be tempted to opt for a teeth whitening technique. A multitude of options are then available to you! Which one to choose? Here are a few lines that we hope could help you make your choice.
Which Whitening Technique To Choose?
Over-the-counter gums, toothpastes, trays and strips, treatment at the dentist or treatment at an aesthetic clinic, teeth whitening techniques seem to be on the rise. But what is the best option for effective, long-lasting and safe whitening?
Whitening Toothpastes
There are two types of whitening toothpastes: those containing abrasive ingredients and those containing a chemical ingredient to lighten the teeth.
Toothpastes of the first category are not real whitening products: they only exert their action on the stains on the surface of the teeth. We strongly advise against them, as they can damage your enamel. Toothpastes of the second category, on the other hand, contain very little whitening agent, and therefore their effect is not noticeable.
Whitening Kits Sold In Pharmacies
Whitening kits sold in pharmacies contain more powerful whitening agents than toothpaste, but their concentration remains insufficient to cause significant whitening.
In addition, without a meticulous cleaning at the dentist before their use, tartar deposits on your teeth will prevent whitening products from acting on your enamel. Thus, the exposed enamel will be paler, but not the deposits and the underlying enamel.
Also, beware of the one-size-fits-all aligners often included in these kits, because as they are not made to measure, some of your teeth will regain more shine than others thanks to the treatment, creating a “piano effect”. Unflattering. Bleach is also more likely to leak into your mouth or come into contact with your gums, causing sensitivity.
And ultimately, by using these over-the-counter products, you don’t get the security you get from the dentist who can monitor side effects, like tooth sensitivity and gum pain, and adjust treatment to eliminate them as needed. .
Treatment Under The Supervision Of A Dentist
The main advantages of teeth whitening at the dentist are the safety and effectiveness of the treatment. In this sense, dentists can use more powerful whitening agents than those available over the counter, therefore optimizing the results and their durability. Also, dentists are trained to detect and treat the side effects that treatment sometimes causes. They can also advise you and help you adjust your expectations regarding the results of whitening.
In addition, a dentist will be able, before starting the treatment, to carry out a cleaning to eliminate any presence of tartar which could harm the effectiveness of whitening and a complete examination to make sure that you do not have cavities. Or faulty restoration that must be repaired first.
Thanks to this examination, the risks that the treatment aggravates an oral problem already present are ruled out. And if there is indeed a risk, the dentist can advise against the treatment.