What Do We Use a Dental Scraper For?
Even if you brush your teeth and gums and floss often, regular professional cleaning is a key part of maintaining oral health. A professional dental cleaning can remove plaque, tartar, and surface stains that build up on teeth. You can minimize plaque and tartar buildup by brushing and flossing your teeth every day and drinking lots of water, but over time, everyone will experience it.
If you don’t visit us at Northside Dental every six months, especially if you neglect your oral care at home, you can suffer from gum disease and cavities! In today’s blog, we talk about why we use a dental scraper during a cleaning.
Why do you want to scrape my teeth?
It may seem barbaric or unusual when the hygienist begins scraping your teeth. But there are proven scientific benefits to why we do what we do.
Scraping at the dentist can combat serious dental problems down the road, and bring healthier mouths and brighter, whiter smiles. The saliva, bacteria, and proteins in your mouth may form a thick layer of plaque that will cover your teeth if you don’t brush or floss enough.
When you eat, tiny food particles stick to this film, feeding the bacteria and allowing them to multiply. If bacteria are not removed from teeth through daily brushing, flossing, and regular cleaning, it can lead to tooth decay and gum disease.
Tartar is calcified plaque attached to tooth enamel, which can irritate the gums and only a dental professional can properly remove it. Although the standard cleaning you do at home will clean the surface of the teeth, the scaling done at the dentist will be more thorough.
Plus, plaque is much harder to remove with just simple brushing. A dental scraper removes plaque, and our dental hygienists have a deft touch that removes hardened plaque without hurting the enamel or your gums.
What are the benefits of removing plaque and tartar?
Dental scraping is the basic task whereby we completely remove harmful plaque and tartar to improve oral health and overall health. Generally, dental hygienists use scrapers to remove deposits around and under the gum line and between and on the surface of the teeth.
The more tartar you accumulate in a place, the more time it will take to scrape that particular area. But when they are finished, your smile will be smoother and healthier than ever before! Read our other blogs for comprehensive information on dental tools or to learn about how our dental clinic utilizes mouth mirrors.
Who can perform dental scraping safely on my teeth?
Dental scraping is a normal part of cleaning your teeth at the dentist’s office. And we promise to take good care of you and your teeth! Call Northside Dental in Springfield at 417-862-2468 to come in for a visit.