Frequently Asked Questions

Maintaining high oral hygiene is the sure way to prolong your teeth’s useful life and reduce the visits to the dentist’s to the minimum number of regular dental check-ups. Good care covers:

• regular, thorough brushing and flossing
• a responsible diet (avoiding too much sugary foods and drinks)
• drinking plenty of water (washes away food residues after eating)
• not exposing your teeth to large temperature fluctuations (quickly alternating between hot and cold can cause your teeth enamel to crack)
• attending your regular dental check-ups
• scheduling a dentist appointment at the first signs of trouble and not waiting until disaster strikes

Proper toothbrushing requires that you clean every exposed tooth surface in a gentle, massaging, alternating (circular, back-and-forth, up-and-down) motion for about 2-3 minutes. Do not apply too much pressure or you can damage your gums and teeth enamel.

Hint: Try taking your time. Most people tend to rush it.

Hint: Use toothpaste about the size of a pea. Covering the whole brush with toothpaste is a thing from toothpaste commercials and it is good marketing but doing it will only fill your mouth with excessive amounts of foam which is hard to wash off completely.

Some dentists advise brushing your teeth after every meal or snack you take. We consider this extreme and impracticable in our busy lives. Two times – after waking up and before going to bed – is enough if you do it right. Throughout the day drinking water and/or chewing gum will do.

It is essential that you find your balance. Overdo it and care for your teeth turns into an excruciating ritual. Skip it and your visits to the dentist’s office will become more frequent. Skip these and your eventual problems and dental bill will skyrocket.

People are overwhelmed with choice. But, in general, it is as simple as buying any paste that contains fluoride. Fluoride helps prevent tooth decay and cavities.

If you need any special toothpaste, your dentist will tell you.

Hint: Some whitening toothpastes contain abrasive elements that may cause more harm to your teeth enamel than good.

Again, don’t let choice overwhelm you. Keep it simple! Buy a soft toothbrush with a head small enough to reach the tight spots in the back of your mouth (but not so small that you need an hour to cover the surface of all teeth). Pick the one that satisfies these conditions and your aesthetic sense and use it proudly and frequently. Replace it every 2-3 months.

Hint: Ask your dentist whether you need a special toothbrush.

It is up to you. It is the same as with razors: some people prefer manual, others – electric. A good thing about electric toothbrushes is that some have a built-in timer. But they are less portable and more expensive than manual toothbrushes. Weigh the costs and benefits for yourself.

Yes, it is a good idea to brush your tongue. This removes bacteria and freshens your breath.

Flossing comes in handy where brushing fails you. Dental floss reaches the spaces between teeth that toothbrushes may skip. Floss after brushing your teeth. If you can’t do it as often as you brush, floss only once daily before going to bed.

Hint: Tearing or shredding (apart from that caused by too much pressure) floss may indicate the presence of a hidden tooth cavity.

Note: Flossing cannot replace brushing but it nicely builds on it.

Proper flossing goes like this:

• cut around 40cm of floss
• wind most of it around your middle fingers (this seems to work best for most people but you can try with other fingers), leaving 3-5cm to work with
• hold the floss firmly between your index finger and thumb and slide it gently up-and-down between your teeth
• curve the floss around the base of each tooth, making sure that you go beneath the gumline and being very careful that you don’t damage the gum itself
• use clean sections of floss as you move from tooth to tooth
• remove the floss with the same gentle up-and-down motion as when you started

In general, there are two types of floss: multifilament and monofilament. The first type is available waxed (slides easily between teeth) and unwaxed, and in a variety of flavors. It is composed of many strands of nylon and may sometimes tear. Monofilament floss is stronger and more expensive.

Hint: It is not the choice of floss (toothpaste or toothbrush) that matters, but how you use it.

Mouthwash can be used, in addition to brushing and flossing, to enhance dental hygiene. Antiseptic and anti-plaque mouthwash fights bacterial plaque and thus protects against cavities, gingivitis, and bad breath.

Note: Mouthwash can be a nice addition to the dental products you use and it freshens your breath, but it cannot replace brushing and flossing.

Maintaining high oral hygiene eliminates bad breath and includes:

• regular, thorough brushing and flossing
• a responsible diet (avoiding strong odor foods)
• drinking plenty of water (washes away food residues after eating)
• going to your regular dental check-ups
• scheduling a dentist appointment at the first signs of trouble and not waiting until disaster strikes.

Note: Bad breath may be an early sign of a dental problem. If it persists even when you are maintaining high oral hygiene, you should consult a dentist.

Hint: If bad breath is the result of eating smelly foods (garlic, onions) or drinking alcohol, brushing your teeth, chewing gum and using mouthwash will only alleviate the problem but won’t solve it, because the source of the smell is in your stomach.

Chewing gum can partially compensate for the lack of time for brushing and flossing throughout the day. It reduces bacterial plaque and freshens breath.

Hint: Something chewing gum advertisements won’t tell you is that the main benefit of chewing gum is increased salivation, which normalizes mouth pH (acidity) and thus, the risk of cavities. Choosing chewing gum is just a matter of taste as long as it is sugar-free.

Hint: Most chewing gums contain sorbitol (a sweetener) which has a laxative effect.

Note: Extended chewing of gum (more than 5-10min at a time) can cause demineralization of your teeth which reduces their hardness. Constant chewing (of gum or else) wears out your temporomandibular joint (where your lower jaw attaches to the skull).

Note: In some cases, the vacuum created when chewing gum can cause your fillings and other dental restorations (crowns, bridges, etc.) to come loose.

Gradually, your own teeth (in contrast to prosthetic teeth made of certain materials that do not darken) will darken no matter how good care you take of them. It is a normal process like aging. Some of the reasons for teeth darkening include: drinking dark tees, red wine, coffee; eating highly colored foods (candy, cherries, berries); smoking.

If you want to keep your teeth white and in top shape, apart from maintaining high oral hygiene, you need to visit the dentist’s office for your regular dental check-ups. Your dentist will advise when you need teeth whitening or scaling and root planing.

Unless induced by you damaging the gums, this can be a sign of periodontal disease and it should be treated before it leads to more serious problems and even loss of teeth.

Yes, we offer porcelain and white composite fillings.

Because most metals used in metal-based crowns and bridges are not completely biocompatible, they react with the live tissue and cause your gum to color and retract. One way to avoid this is to ask for all-porcelain or zirconium crowns, which are completely biocompatible and do not cause such reactions. Read about them in our Materials section.

Most probably you have a dental cavity or gum retraction around the bases of your teeth and you need to see a dentist.

Generally, biannually at least, but better do it quarterly and don’t forget to schedule an appointment at the first signs of a dental problem.

Dr Genchevi Dental Care works from 9am to 8pm on weekdays. Special weekend arrangements can be made in advance for patients with special needs. Please contact us with the nature of your dental emergency.

Modern equipment minimizes patient exposure, but it is still an x-ray, meaning that it is not good to do it too often.

No, Dr Genchevi Dental Care does not work with NHIF.