First and foremost, the team at Brighton Family Dental Group want to wish you and your family a happy Thanksgiving.

As your dental care family, we are thankful for you and the opportunity to make you and your family smile all year round. To reserve post-holiday cleanings for you and your family, give us a call at (617) 562-5210. We look forward to seeing you and starting 2012 with a smile!

Post-Holiday Dental Hygiene

Once the table is clear, leftovers divided and put away, and the infamous “food coma” has set in, you have one more thing to think about. Every year, National Flossing Day falls the day after Thanksgiving, so Dr. Tom Villani and Dr. Richard Kondrat want to remind you that flossing is a crucial part of maintaining a healthy smile.

To floss properly, follow these five simple steps:

  1. Starting with about 18 inches of floss, wind most of the floss around each middle finger, leaving an inch of two of floss to work with.
  2. Holding the floss tightly between your thumbs and index fingers, slide the floss gently up and down between your teeth.
  3. Gently curve the floss around the base of each tooth, making sure you go beneath the gumline. Never snap or force the floss, as this may cut or bruise delicate gum tissue.
  4. Use clean sections of floss as you move from tooth to tooth.
  5. To remove the floss, use the same back and forth motion to bring the floss up and away from the teeth.

Brushing alone is not enough to keep your teeth healthy and clean between regular dental cleanings and exams. Ideally, Dr. Villani and Dr. Kondrat want you to floss at least twice a day, but if you can only do it once daily, floss before bed. Doing so will rid your mouth of bacteria so that your teeth are free from plaque build-up while you sleep.

To reserve an end-of-the-year dental cleaning at Brighton Family Dental Group, call our Brighton, Massachusetts dental office at (617) 562-5210.