Does brushing your teeth, sipping hot coffee, or drinking ice-cold water make you wince? If so, you might have sensitive teeth. However, a few adjustments to your daily routine can give you sensitive teeth help that you need for better oral health.
Here’s some insight into what causes sensitive teeth, what the symptoms look like, and the 9 things that actually help your sensitive teeth feel better than ever.
What causes sensitive teeth?
Many things can cause this. Depending on the extent, teeth sensitivity can be mild. But it can also be a symptom of an underlying dental problem with tooth decay being a common cause.
Sensitive teeth can also be a result of tooth grinding or gum disease that eats into your enamel and gums. Plaque can infect your gums, and expose the nerve endings in your teeth, which then triggers pain. A cracked tooth can also make chewing or even brushing difficult.
Sensitive teeth symptoms
If you get a sharp or sudden pain in your teeth after eating hot or cold food and sweet or sticky foods, you could need sensitive teeth help. With this, you could also have pain when you brush or floss or when you breathe cold air.
It also helps to know that teeth sensitivity is measured by how much pain you have and how often you have it. If you have intense pain, you could have severe teeth sensitivity and need to get dental assistance right away.
How to deal with sensitive teeth
1. Surgical gum graft
Your dentist can recommend a surgical gum graft to reduce the sensitivity of gums that pull away from the teeth. For this, a periodontist fills the worn away area of your gum with a piece of tissue taken from the roof of your mouth.
The graft covers exposed tooth roots that could be what’s causing your sensitivity. A surgical gum graft can be an effective treatment for you, giving you the sensitive teeth help that you need.
2. Fluoride gel
Different brands of toothpaste have some elements of fluoride to help take care of sensitive teeth. Yet it also helps strengthen your enamel. Fluoride prevents tooth decay by blocking harmful agents that can cause teeth cavity.
However, if you have extremely sensitive teeth, your dentist can recommend putting fluoride gel on the affected area. This is an effective treatment option, as it prevents further infection while preventing tooth decay.
3. Specialized toothpaste
For your sensitive teeth pain relief, use special toothpaste to help ease your discomfort. These kinds of toothpaste are affordable, and you can even get them over the counter.
The desensitizing agents in the toothpaste are specifically designed to eliminate teeth sensitivity pain. Good oral hygiene, including brushing with specialized toothpaste at least twice a day, helps reduce teeth pain and sensitivity too.
4. Using a soft-bristled toothbrush
Not every brush works the same for your teeth. For the best sensitive teeth help, use a soft toothbrush, and avoid brushing too hard. This is because using too much effort to brush your teeth can weaken your gums. And as a result, you teeth get more sensitive, and you become susceptible to pain.
5. Oral hygiene
Poor oral hygiene is also a common sensitive teeth cause. With proper oral hygiene, you can easily deal with the sensitivity, and achieve lasting sensitive teeth pain relief. Oral health basics include brushing your teeth twice daily using toothpaste, swishing with mouthwash, and flossing. And if you normally grind your teeth at night, you can use a mouthguard to prevent your teeth from wearing out.
6. Dietary changes
Acidic foods and drinks are known to eat into your enamel, or the outer layer of your teeth. In addition to maintaining oral hygiene, you should consider changing your diet and limiting your acidic foods/drinks intake. This will help keep your tooth enamel from dissolving, which can make brushing painful.
7. Bonding
This procedure involves your dentist attaching a permanent material to your infected tooth. Under intense curing light, an adhesive is used to permanently attach the dental material.
Bonding can happen in two ways depending on the extent of your teeth damage. It can happen with direct composite bonding, which involves repairing cracked teeth or chips. Or it can happen with adhesive bonding, which is common in crowns and bridges.
8. Crowns
Your dentist can also use crowns/caps. These are often made of gold or ceramic and fused with metal to preserve your decayed teeth. Usually, a crown is used to cover your damaged tooth. This protects it against infections and from decaying even further.
9. Root canal
If you have extremely sensitive teeth that cause intense pain, a root canal may be your best option. An X-ray will confirm the diagnosis of an infected pulp. Under local anesthesia, your dentist will remove the infected soft center part of your tooth (or pulp).
This procedure kills the nerve endings in the infected tooth/teeth and eliminates pain. Your dentist will also coat the area with a special material called gutta-percha.
For more information
If you want to eliminate teeth sensitivity, there is no shortcut to oral health. You should plan to make oral hygiene your daily routine and be sure to go for regular dental checkups. If you notice any of the sensitive teeth symptoms and require more information on sensitive teeth help, contact our team of experts at Arkansas Family Dental at (501) 381-7232 to schedule an appointment today.
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