How Do Crooked Teeth Increase Your Risk Of Cavities?

We all know that dental health is important and if you don’t look after your teeth properly, you will get cavities. If you want to keep your teeth healthy, it’s important that you have a good oral hygiene routine to follow. You also need to visit the dentist on a regular basis for checkups, so make sure that you have a good dental plan too.

 

Image From Pixabay CCO License

Although these things are important, a lot of people don’t realize the impact that crooked teeth can have on your oral hygiene. Most people assume that it is purely a cosmetic problem and if you are not too concerned about the way that they look, you don’t need to worry about having slightly crooked teeth. However, that isn’t the case and if you have crooked teeth, you are far more likely to have issues with tooth decay and cavities. You can wear your retainers and you can do all of the things right with your braces, but that doesn't mean that you won’t still run into dental issues. Did you know that dental problems can run in families? The best thing that you can do is make sure that you are able to get to the dentist as regularly as possible to keep on top of your teeth. In addition, if you have children, don't delay consulting with a pediatric dentist if you have any concerns about the oral health of your child, as crooked teeth can affect children as well as adults, and leaving any problems unaddressed can lead to more significant problems in the future. These are some of the ways that tooth decay can lead to cavities.

Teeth Grinding 

Grinding teeth is a common dental problem characterized by the grinding or clenching of teeth, often during sleep. Grinding your teeth a lot can cause them to chip and break over time. When this happens, it is easier for tooth decay to take hold and you may experience a lot of pain. People that grind their teeth regularly are also likely to experience problems with their jaw as well.

Although there are a lot of reasons why people grind their teeth, crooked or misaligned teeth make the problem a lot worse. If your upper and lower teeth do not meet in the right place, you will find that you inadvertently grind them. Even though you don’t realize that you are doing it, you can still cause a lot of damage to your teeth and increase the likelihood of cavities.

Problems With Brushing 

Brushing your teeth is the most basic thing you can do to protect your teeth from cavities. But if your teeth are crooked, you may not be cleaning them as effectively as you should be. Crooked teeth that overlap with one another create small gaps where bits of food and plaque can hide. When you brush, you easily miss these areas and even when you use mouthwash and floss, you might not get all of the plaque and bacteria out.

What Can Be Done? 

If you have crooked teeth and you are concerned about the impact that it is having on your oral health, you should speak to your dentist right away and see what treatments they recommend. In most cases, there is no need to have bulky braces fitted and you can usually use clear braces instead. These are a much better solution because they straighten your teeth but they are barely visible, so you don’t need to feel self conscious about wearing them. There are some great companies that sell clear braces directly to the consumer. You can get a kit to take impressions of your teeth from home, so you never even need to visit a dentist's office.

If you have crooked teeth and you don’t do anything about it, the problem will only get worse and your oral health will suffer. So, speak to your dentist about possible solutions right away.