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Every March the world celebrates Oral Health Day and this March it falls on the 20^th. We think it’s an excellent opportunity for all of our lovely patients to think about their oral health for a moment and to consider if it could be improved. During this month, our dental team here at One Smile have all pledged to inspire our patients to take the best possible care of their oral health, although this is something we strive to do year-round!

Why is Good Dental Health Important?

Every day your mouth must do amazing things, letting you bite and chew a variety of foods comfortably, allowing you to talk and smile with others, hopefully with the confidence of knowing your teeth look their best. Unfortunately, many people do not enjoy good oral health and have problems like gum disease and tooth decay which can be easily avoided with the proper oral care. Having excellent oral health also protects your overall health, reducing your risk of developing serious health problems that include diabetes and heart disease.

We’d like to encourage you to book your dental checkup and hygiene appointment with us here at One Smile, whether you need to visit us this month or later in the year. Our caring dental team can help you manage your oral health effectively so you can maintain a healthy smile more easily year-round.

An Easter egg hunt is a very traditional part of any Easter celebration, but planning the perfect hunt takes a bit of thought.

Hide Craft Eggs or Chocolate Eggs?

Instead of hiding chocolate eggs this year that are quickly melted or squished or eaten by the family dog, why not hide colourful craft eggs or Easter themed knickknacks? These can always be swapped later for chocolate eggs or other Easter goodies.

Decorating Real Eggs

Get the kids involved with decorating real eggs. First, prepare the eggs by making a tiny hole either end to drain out the white and yolk. Real eggs can be decorated in numerous ways by being painted, dyed or with wax.

Making Age-Appropriate Clues

When planning your Easter egg hunt, make sure any clues are age-appropriate, for example, a picture of the hiding place is all that’s needed for little bunnies while older children can cope with more challenging clues.

Make a Note of Where You’ve Hidden the Eggs

It’s worth making a note of where you have hidden the eggs to make sure they are all retrieved. It’s surprisingly easy to forget!

Set Boundaries

Before beginning your Easter egg hunt, make sure your children know where they can go and which areas are out of bounds, so everyone stays safe.

Easter is a time when there are all sorts of tasty treats around and lots of gatherings and events to attend. It’s a shame not to indulge, but with a bit of thought, you can look after your teeth and have your cake and eat it too.

Choose Your Sweets Carefully

If possible, avoid sticky and hard sweets that are more likely to damage your teeth. Sticky candies are difficult to remove when you brush and floss your teeth while hard sweets can easily chip or crack your tooth enamel if you bite down. Also, hard sweets take longer to dissolve, maximising the time your teeth are exposed to sugar. Chocolate is always a better choice because it melts very easily and is more quickly rinsed away by saliva.

Wait before Brushing

Don’t brush your teeth immediately after eating something sweet but wait at least half an hour. Initially, the acid produced by mouth bacteria weakens your tooth enamel, softening it, so it’s more easily damaged if you brush your teeth immediately. Waiting allows the pH levels in your mouth to normalise, re-hardening your tooth enamel and reducing the damage caused by sugar and acid.

Rinse with Water

Immediately after eating, it’s helpful to rinse your mouth with water because this helps to neutralise acids, restoring a normal pH more quickly while washing away loose food particles.