Dental Hygiene in Bracknell, Berkshire

Protecting Children's Teeth

A regular teeth-cleaning routine is essential for good dental health in children.

Start brushing your baby's teeth with fluoride toothpaste as soon as the first milk tooth breaks through. It's important to use a fluoride toothpaste as this helps prevent and control tooth decay. Always check with your dentist about the right choice of toothpaste for your child's age and tooth development.

All children can use family toothpaste as long as you supervise brushing until the age of seven. Brush your child's teeth for about two minutes twice a day: once just before bedtime and at least one other time during the day.

Supervise tooth brushing until your child is seven or eight years old, either by brushing their teeth yourself or watching how they do it. From the age of seven or eight they should be able to brush their own teeth.

Dental Hygiene in Adults

Our dental hygiene treatment includes professionally cleaning the teeth for the patient. This is usually called scaling and polishing. However, perhaps our most important role is showing you the best way to keep your teeth and gums healthy.

The Importance of Dental Hygiene

Poor dental hygiene leads to bacteria that build-up on teeth make gums prone to infection. The immune system attempts to curb the infection and the gums become inflamed. The inflammation continues unless the infection is brought under control.

Over time, inflammation and the chemicals it releases eat away at the gums and bone structure that hold teeth in place. The result is severe gum disease, known as periodontitis. Inflammation can also cause problems in the rest of the body.

A Specialist Periodontist

Over 80% of the UK population have some form of gum disease and most of these are mild cases and can be treated with a good dental hygiene regime.

For patients with moderate to severe gum disease, you may need to be referred to a Specialist in Periodontics and we are proud that we have Dr Raman Bhardwaj at CrownWood Dental.

Referral to a specialist is necessary where a more detailed treatment of your teeth and gums is required and the treatment options include both non-surgical and surgical management of gum disease, depending on the patient diagnosis.

It’s important to pre-empt the onset of severe gum disease because it can also cause problems in the rest of the body.

The Link to Diabetes

The relationship between diabetes and periodontitis is now becoming clear. Inflammation that starts in the mouth weakens the body’s ability to control blood sugar. People with diabetes have trouble processing sugar because of a lack of insulin (the hormone that converts sugar into energy). Periodontal disease further complicates diabetes because the inflammation impairs the body’s ability to utilize insulin.

The Link to Heart Disease

Though the reasons are not fully understood, it's clear that gum disease and heart disease also go hand in hand. Up to 91% of patients with heart disease have periodontitis, compared to 66% of people with no heart disease. The two conditions have several risk factors in common, such as smoking, unhealthy diet, and excess weight. And some suspect that periodontitis has a direct role in raising the risk for heart disease as well.

The Link to Pregnancy

While many factors contribute to premature or low birth weight deliveries, researchers are also looking at the possible role of gum disease. Infection and inflammation in general seem to interfere with a foetus’ development in the womb.

Book an Appointment

Crownwood Dental is a member of the British Society of Dental Hygiene & Therapy.

Crownwood Dental is rated 4.8 out of 5 based on 105 ratings with Google.

Frequently Asked Questions

Plaque is a mixture of bacteria and food. It looks like a soft sticky film on your teeth.
If left undisturbed it will eventually harden to form calculus, otherwise known as tartar, which provides an ideal surface for more bacteria to gather. The bacteria building up irritate the gums, causing them to look red and puffy (gum inflammation) and it can be quite sore. You may also notice some bleeding on brushing. This is commonly known as "Gingivitis" – inflammation of the gums.

Should the build-up of plaque continue it can lead to Periodontal disease.
During your examination your hygienist will gently feel your gums and if a "pocket" is detected; this means that a "dip" has formed between the tooth and gum line. This pocket should measure less than 3mm in health but if bacteria within plaque has caused early disease then this "dip" will be deeper and more likely to trap more plaque and bacteria meaning that the pocket may well become deeper as the bacteria destroy the gum and surrounding tissues including the supporting bone.

If left untouched and untreated, gum disease may progress leading to severe loss of attachment of tooth to gum and the possibility of a loose tooth/teeth. Once this has happened treatment is more complex and usually requires referral to a gum specialist called a "Periodontist" for advanced periodontal treatment.
During your visit to the hygienist, they will record an index of how healthy your gums are. This classification system is recommended by the WHO (World Health Organisation). We have provided a simple version of it for you below:
- 0 - Healthy gums, absence of bleeding or pockets
- 1 - Bleeding present when we probe but no signs of any pocket (Gingivitis)
- 2 - No pocketing detected you may have an area where plaque is prone to build (e.g. the rough edge of a filling)
- 3 - We detected pocket/s measuring between 3.5-5.5mm below the gum-line - early gum disease (Periodontitis)
- 4 - We detected pocket/s measuring over 5.5mm below the gum-line, this is more advanced gum disease
If you score a code 3 or 4 is it likely that your hygienist will need to do a "deep clean" or RSD (root surface debridement) which means the removal of calculus from the root surface and down into the pocket that exists between tooth and gum. This should help the pocket to resolve and new healthy gum attachments to occur. Outside factors such as smoking, general health and stress levels will determine how successful the treatment is. You may require a referral to a Periodontist (available within our practice) if your gum disease is not responding to hygienist treatment or if the disease is very advanced.
Although this treatment should not be painful, occasionally it can be a little uncomfortable. If any discomfort is felt then please say, there are a number of ways for us to help. If you are having a "deeper" clean, or "root surface debridement" then your hygienist will probably use local anaesthetic to avoid any discomfort.
We have a GDC registered Specialist Periodontist here at Crownwood Dental.
A very important factor on improving/maintaining good oral health is based on what you do at home. Your hygienist can advise you on how best to keep all surfaces of your teeth clean.
All of the products we recommend for use are on sale here at Crownwood Dental. If they are not, then we can order them for you at your convenience.
Your hygienist will be more than happy to help and demonstrate their uses and benefits to you, so please just ask us!
If the film of plaque acquires sugar then the bacteria produce acid which attacks the tooth surface. Minerals are lost from the tooth surface and eventually the bacteria will cause a cavity. The bacteria will continue to decay your tooth, and unless treated then it may progress to the pulp and cause pain and/or swelling.
One of the ways in which we help prevent dental decay and acid erosion is by looking at foods you take in. The hygienist can help identify any acids/sugars in your diet which may the cause of dental decay/acid erosion and can advise you on how to prevent further damage to your teeth.