Minty Breath & Sparkly White Teeth

A bit of a different post for you today is served up and it's all about oral hygiene. After all, a good lipstick means nothing if teeth aren't clean and healthy so it's all about doing the beauty thing from the inside out. Basic dental care involves brushing and flossing your teeth regularly, seeing your dentist and/or dental hygienist for regular checkups and cleanings, and eating a mouth-healthy diet whilst cutting down on coffee, wine, tobacco and other things people consume which stain the teeth. Avoiding foods that contain a lot of sugar is always a struggle of mine as I'm addicted to sugary sweets – but I'm trying to minimize their intake.. Sugar helps plaque grow – not good. Practicing basic dental care is rewarding in a multitude of ways. It prevents tooth decay, gum (periodontal) disease which can damage gum tissue and the bones that support teeth and in the long term can lead to the loss of teeth. In the long run it saves money. By preventing tooth decay and gum disease, you can reduce the need for fillings and other costly procedures. It also helps prevent bad breath. Brushing and flossing rid your mouth of the bacteria that cause bad breath. It's recommended to keep brushing your teeth twice a day and floss once a day. Personally, my brushing ranks up to three times a day and flossing up to two times. This removes plaque, which can lead to damaged teeth, gums, and surrounding bone. Practice tongue cleaning – do you clean your tongue? I have a toothbrush which has a dedicated tongue-cleansing pad at the back of its head. It looks weirs but does great things. You can use a tongue cleaner or a soft-bristle toothbrush, stroking in a back-to-front direction. Tongue cleaning is particularly important for people who smoke or whose tongues are coated or deeply grooved. Here I will lay out my typical helpers in the quest of maintaining clean, healthy teeth and fresh breath.

Danas sam pripremila nesto drugaciji post za vas i citav je posvecen oralnoj higijeni. Uostalom, mislim da je potpuno jasno kako dobar ruz ne znaci apsolutno nista ukoliko zubi nisu zdravi i lijepi, tako da je ovo samo nastavak pristupa ljepoti koja dolazi prije svega iznutra, ka izvana. Osnovna oralna njega podrazumjeva redovno cetkanje zuba i ciscenje zubnim koncem, redovite posjete zubaru kako radi kontrole tako i radi standardnog ciscenja od kamenca i sl. No nemojmo zaboraviti i inkorporiranje prehrane koja ce doprinijeti zdravlju cjelokupnog organizma ali zuba te usne supljine sto bi (izmedju ostalog) znacilo izbacivanje kafe, vina, duhana i ostalih stvari koje ljudi konzumiraju a cine zube tamnijima i ostavljaju fleke na njihovoj povrsini. Izbjegavanje slatkih, secernih dezerta je takodjer jako bitno (secer potice razvoj kamenca) i sa tim vodim mozda najtezu bitku posto sam veliki ljubitelj slatkisa no radim na svodjenju unosa secera na minimum. Praktikovanje dobre oralne higijene vraca visestruko. Preventivno djeluje na propadanje zuba, na bolesti zubnog mesa (paradentoza) koje mogu voditi ka ostecenjima desni ali i kosti koje podrzavaju zube – ovo sve u konacnici vodi do propadanja i gubitka zuba. Na duze staze, pravovremena i konstantna briga o zubima stedi novac koji bi inace bio potrosen na razlicite tretmane, plombe itd. Takodjer, lijepom oralnom njegom sprijecavate neugodan zadah – cetkanje i koristenje zubnog konca rijesava usnu supljinu bakterija koje uzrokuju los zadah. Preporuceno je cetkanje dva puta a koristenje zubnog konca jednom dnevno. Licno sam primjetila da mi najvise odgovara cetkanje do tri puta dnevno a koristenje konca ujutro i navecer (2x dnevno). Oba nacina ciscenja uklanjaju naslage koje bi inace prouzrokovale ostecenje zuba, desni i okolne kosti. Praktikujte i ciscenje jezika – koliko nas zaista ovo cini? Imam jednu zgodnu cetkicu za zube koja na pozadini ‘glave’ ima rebrastu povrsinu konkretno namijenjenu ciscenju jezika. Izgleda cudno ali super radi svoj posao. No takodjer mozete koristiti cetkice mekanih vlasi, pomjerajuci ih nazad ka naprijed preko jezika. Ciscenje jezika je pogotovo bitno za osobe koje su pusaci ili ciji je reljef jezika dosta izrazen. U nastavku cu pisati o tipicnim herojima na koje se oslanjam u zadatku odrzavanja dobre oralne higijene.

Flossing has pretty much changed my view of dental care. My husband has introduced me to its many positive sides and seeing that he always had a brilliant white pair of teeth (mine are naturally more ivory colored), I simply had to give it a go! After you see how much food remains stuck between teeth after you've thoroughly brushed them, wel…you'll never be the same. You can't really reach the tight spaces between your teeth and under the gumline with a toothbrush. That's why daily flossing is important. When you floss it's important to use enough dental floss to reach into every space. Be gentle and don't carve the floss into your gums – gently rub. My fave is the Dontodent Sensitive Floss with Mint (drogerie markt exclusive, 50m for approx 2€). If floss still isn't your thing, try interdental cleansers such as a special wooden or plastic picks, sticks or brushes designed to clean between the teeth. As long as you do a thorough job, it doesn't matter if you brush or floss first. However, flossing before brushing might allow more fluoride from your toothpaste to reach between your teeth. As for toothbrushes, I'm a fan of Sensodyne and Curaprox ones but I'm really converted to my Oral-B Vitality Pro White Electric Toothbrush (approx 43,99€). I think it was a great investment as we have one ‘body’ and only switch electrical heads (his and hers have different colored bands so we don't switch them up – mine has a yellow band and his is blue).

Koristenje zubnog konca i njegovo inkorporiranje u dnevni ritual je u potpunosti promjenilo moj pogled na oralnu higijenu. Suprug mi je na neki nacin ‘otvorio oci’ po ovom pitanju a i zagovornik sam toga da cu rado poslusati savjet osobe koja na datom polju zaista ima odlicne rezultate. Posto je muzonja oduvijek imao bas bljestavo bijeli osmijeh (dok je moj prirodno vise naginjao na boju bjelokosti), naprosto me sve navodilo da poslusam njegove sugestije. Nakon sto vidite koliko hrane ostane na zubnom koncu nakon cetkanja zuba za koje bih licno tvrdila da je bilo besprijekorno – nesto se naprosto promijeni u nacinu razmisljanja. Prilicno je tesko doprijeti sa cetkicom u najudaljenije dijelove, iza svakog pregiba i uskog prostora izmedju zubica i desni. Upravo tu uskace zubni konac na svakodnevnoj bazi. Kada ga koristite, bitno je da ne stedite na kolicini – slobodno odvojite dovoljno konca da obmotate jedan kraj oko prsta ali i da mozete sa ostatkom doci do najudaljenijih zubica. Budite njezni, nema potrebe da konac doslovno urezemo u desni – dovoljno je samo njezno trljati ga izmedju prostora oko zuba. Meni je najdrazi Dontodent Sensitive zubni konac sa mentom (50m konca kosta cca 3KM u dm-u). Ukoliko se ne mozete navici na zubni konac u izvornom obliku, mislim da su dosta zgodne minijaturne cetkice sa plasticnoom ili drvenom bazom koje su namijenjene konkretno ciscenju medjuzubnog prostora. U svakom slucaju, nije toliko bitno kojim redoslijedom idete sa cetkanjem i zubnim koncem sve dok ste temeljite. Ipak, mozda je malo bolje prvo koristiti zubni konac a potom cetkati zube kako bi fluor iz paste mogao doprijeti do sitnijih pregiba. Sto se tice cetkica za zube, inace sam ljubiteljica Sensodyne i Curaprox cetkica no istinski se osjecam preobraceno nakon kupovine Oral-B Vitality Pro White elektricne cetkice za zube (kupljena u dm-u za cca 80KM). Mislim da je bila sjajna investicija! Uz nju sam dobila originalnu ‘glavu’ no odmah sam kupila i dodatne zamjenske patrone koje smo suprug i ja podijelili (svako je obiljezio svoju u odredjenu boju kako ih ne bi pomijesali – moja ima zutu trakicu a njegova plavu). 

As for toothpaste, again, Sensodyne fan over here but I've also been loving the Alverde 5in1 Toothpaste with Mint Oil (75ml for approx 2,5€). Mint is pretty consistent with our concept of freshness and is effective at masking oral malodor and reducing volatile sulfur compounds (the molecules responsible for bad breath). I think it's a great choice if you want a more soothing, gentle toothpaste and/or if you have sensitive gums as it's geared towards relieving paradentosis. It doesn't foam up as most toothpastes, its mildly minty but it doesn't ‘sting’ the mouth – it rather leaves a sweet minty aftertaste. It's not intended to be used by children under 6 years of age due to its fluoride content. I'd like to write about fluoride, fluoridation and dental fluorosis once – for now I'll just mention that it's all about the dosage and that the young ones should be monitored not to swallow toothpaste. As for mouthwash, Listerine is what I usually go for but it's on the strong side. If you want to try a milder alternative, the Alverde 5in1 Mouthwash with Mint Oil (450ml for approx 2€) is perfect. It doesn't ‘sting’ at all, it doesn't dry out the mouth and it leaves that sweet-ish minty taste which is very pleasant. Again, this mouthwash is enriched with fluoride and if you're not certain if your teeth need it – ask your dentist for advice. Finally, I like to occasionally treat my teeth with some good, old-fashioned baking soda. An imbalance of acid in the body can lead to a range of health problems, particularly in the mouth. Baking soda works by balancing the levels of acid in the body (added bonus is that it helps with whitening). I usually sprinkle some on a wet toothbrush, sometimes I add a few drops of lemon juice and gently scrub my teeth for a minute and afterwards I rinse with lukewarm water. I'm pretty happy with my current routine and haven't had any issues with my teeth for the longest time – just regular upkeep. Do you have any tips on keeping those pearly whites healthy? Do let me know in the comments section below.

Po pitanju pasti za zube, ja sam okorjeli Sensodyne fan no u zadnje vrijeme bas volim koristiti Alverde 5u1 pastu za zube sa mentom (75ml kosta cca 4KM). Djelovanje mente se dosta preklapa sa nasim vidjenjem i konceptom svjezine i prilicno je uspjesna u maskiranju neprijatnih oralnih mirisa. Takodjer je efektna u smanjenju agresivnih sumpornih konponenata (molekule odgovorne za los zadah). Mislim da je Alverde pasta odlicna kao njezna alternativa i/ili ako su vase desni inace jako osjetljive posto djeluje i olaksavajuce na znakove paradentoze. Ne pjeni poput konvencionalnih pasti za zube, mentolasta je na dosta blazi nacin i ne ‘ujeda’ unutrasnjost usta – cak ostavlja izuzetno blag, slatkasto mentolast ukus. Nije namijenjena djeci mladjoj od 6 godina zbog udjela fluora. Voljela bih jednom da dosta detaljnije pisem na temu fluora, fluoridacije vode, zuba itd. no za sada cu samo reci da je doziranje kljucno i da ponajvise treba obratiti paznju da maleni ne progutaju pastu za zube (i sama sam za to kriva dok sam bila mala). Po pitanju osvjezavajucih vodica za usta, Listerine je moj dugogodisnji favorit ali cu i sama priznati da su te vodice dosta jake. Ako trazite nesto njeznije, Alverde 5u1 vodica za ispiranje usta (450ml kosta cca 4,5KM) je savrsena. Uopste nema grickanja unutar usne supljine, ne isusuje je i ostavlja ponovo naj slatkasto mentolasti ukus koji mi je jako ugodan. I Alverde vodica je obogacena fluorom, kao i pasta za zube, tako da – ako niste sigurni da li vam je potrebna dodatna doza fluora – konsultujte se sa svojim zubarom. Napokon, volim da sa vremena na vrijeme zube tretiram dobrom, pouzdanom sodom bikarbonom. Disbalans kiselosti u organizmu moze dovesti do razlicitih zdravstvenih problema, posebno kada je rijec o usnoj supljini. Soda bikarbona (natrijev hidrogenkarbonat) radi na balansiranju nivoa kiselosti u tijelu tj. ustima (a dodatni bonus se ogleda u tome sto izbjeljuje zube). Obicno nakvasenu cetkicu za zube natopim u malo sode bikarbone, ponekada dodam koju kap limunovog soka i njezno trljam pobvrsinu zuba tom smjesom manje od jednog minuta a potom usta ispirem mlakom vodom. Prilicno sam zadovoljna sa oralnom njegom koju sam uspostavila i vec jako dugo vremena nisam imala nikakve probleme sa zubima – samo redovno odrzavanje. Da li imate neke vlastite savjete glede njege zuba? Slobodno mi javite u komentarima.

*Some of these products may have been sent to me for review. For more information, see my disclaimer.