Skip to main content

Dental care during pregnancy

          Pregnancy is a life-altering event in every woman's life. Be prepared for it in every best way possible. Believe it or not, even your teeth also take the impact of your pregnancy hormones. It is important to take meticulous care for your oral cavity.
Know what exactly happens in your mouth and how to save yourself from the trouble!

An important thing to know,
                       


                                      
       So, the wisest thing to do will be getting treated all your dental problems if you are planning to conceive. Visit your dentist even before you visit your OG.

Why is it so important?


  • The stress of undergoing any dental treatment can affect your child.
  • As you all know only limited drugs are deemed safer during pregnancy.
  • Also studies have shown correlation between unattended gum infections and pre-term/ low weight births.

So what really happens?
    During pregnancy, there is an increase in progesterone and estrogen which can go up to 10-30 folds by the end of 3rd trimester.
   These hormones added with reduced maternal immunity and reduced folate, put your body in a vulnerable position. Your body responds to any external stimuli (say dental plaque) in a more accentuated way.

COMMON ORAL PROBLEMS:

  • PREGNANCY GINGIVITIS- Around 30-100% of all pregnant women have pregnancy gingivitis. It is not usually painful, unless there is any painful ulceration. This can cause bleeding from gums.
It resolves on its own after parturition. Having a proper oral hygiene can help reduce the swelling.
  • EROSION OF TEETH- Due to excess vomiting, your teeth get exposed to more stomach acids. This can cause erosion of the outermost layer of your teeth.
  • DECAY- Those sugar cravings and change in flow and consistency of saliva may take a toll on your teeth causing dental decay and aggravates previous decays
  • DISCOLORATION OF TEETH- Iron supplements that you take during pregnancy can sometimes cause color change in your teeth but it is reversible.

THE PANACEA!
    Stick to your oral care routine religiously. Healthy oral habits include,

  • Brushing twice daily (morning & night)
  • Flossing at least once a day
  • Having a healthy diet
  • Gargling after eating snack/ meal
  • Checking your sugar intake and drinking more water
      To know more about brushing technique check our previous post.

    




Follow us on 
 















Comments

Popular posts from this blog

KIDS ORAL HEALTH CARE

                                Your mouth is the gateway to your body. So if you are concerned about your child’s overall health, you should take care of their oral health as well. There is no such thing as early start for oral hygiene. From healthy gums come healthy teeth. As kids grow up, their oral hygiene habit grows with them. We are here with some tips and tricks to embark on the oral health journey of your child. How to take care of gum pads? Gum pads are nothing but the pink, firm raised ridges in your child’s mouth from which teeth erupt.               They should be cleaned from the first week of birth. Cleaning can be easily done by laying the baby on your lap and wiping the area with clean wash cloth using WATER ONLY. Take the bottle away once your child finishes drinking milk. Leaving the bottle ...

FLOSS LIKE A BOSS!

      Flossing trend is back, only this time to make you smile brighter. Yes! I am talking about dental flossing. Everyone knows the importance of flossing yet only a handful actually do it. We believe if you know the proper way to do it, you may start flossing your teeth. So here we are with a new post. Significance of flossing:             A tooth has 5 sides, when you brush you are cleaning only 3 sides. Then what happens to other sides? That is where bacteria are staying happily. Flossing is the best way to clean those two sides.       You can put a stop to plaque build-up thus preventing infection of gums (also following periodontitis) by flossing. Which one to pick?       There is no one “right” floss for everyone. You can try different types and use which is comfortable for you since there is no difference in plaque removing ability.   ...

Why you should always replace a missing tooth?

      "We become aware of the void as we fill it"! Be aware of the void (space) you may have in your mouth and fill it. As not filling it can lead to dire consequences. Read through to know more! Back to basics!    Primary (milk) teeth- 20   From 6months- 6years. After which permanent teeth start replacing primary teeth.    Permanent teeth- 32  28 out of 32 teeth come in by 14years. While 4 (wisdom teeth) teeth erupt between 18-25 years of age. This may vary from person to person. Know the names! Functions of teeth: Grinding and chewing Articulation Aesthetics Maintaining facial form  Apparently all these functions are lost when you loose a tooth.  Teeth have tight contacts with their neighbors. Hence when a tooth is lost, adjacent teeth will automatically start moving from their original position. This movement differs for different teeth.   What happens when you loose a front tooth?    The first and foremo...