Welcome back to Dr. Rose’s dental blog. This month we are talking about planning the perfect oral hygiene routine. You are only given one set of teeth in life (well, besides baby teeth, but those are designed to go away!) so it is important that you take excellent care of them. One of the best thing you can do for your teeth is to schedule regular visits with dentist. However, since you can’t always be at the dentist, you need to have a great oral hygiene routine to account for daily care in between visits.

In part one of this series we discussed the importance of flossing. Now it is time for brushing to take center stage! Think you are already a brushing pro? Let’s find out.

2. Brushing Your teeth

Now that you have really gotten in there flossing, it is time to brush your teeth. This is the most important part of your oral hygiene routine. If for some totally inconceivable reason, like the zombie apocalypse or you are late for school, and you don’t have the time to go through your entire routine, at least make sure you brush your teeth to get rid of that morning breath.

Two minutes. That is how long you should be brushing your teeth. Make sure you reach all the surfaces of your teeth. Plan on spending about 30 seconds on each quadrant of your mouth. Hold your tooth brush at a 45-degree angle towards your gums. Avoid brushing too firmly or too vigorously, as that could damage your gums and cause them to recede.

If you need help picking out the perfect toothbrush, ask your dentist. And finally – twice a day! Brush twice a day, ideally in the morning and before you go to bed. Once a day is just simply not enough.