We’ve all been told that we should see our dentist regularly. But there are many people who ignore this advice and think they should see their dentist only when they have a problem.
But there are many important reasons why you shouldn’t wait until there’s a problem to see your dentist. Here are three benefits of seeing your dentist regularly.
It’s Inexpensive
If you ask people why they aren’t seeing their dentist regularly, they’ll usually say it’s because of the cost. But the truth is that it’s actually more expensive to not see your dentist. Prevention is much cheaper than repair when it comes to dental care. With regular checkups and cleanings, we can perform preventive treatments and utilize inexpensive holistic dentistry strategies like changing your diet.
And if cavities do develop, we can use tooth-colored fillings for an inexpensive fix while the cavities are still small. If you’re not seeing the dentist regularly, you might not notice a cavity until it starts to hurt. Which may mean that you need an extraction followed by a dental implant which is much more expensive than a filling.
It’s Convenient
People also say that they don’t go to the dentist because it’s inconvenient. It’s true that seeing your dentist regularly does require putting aside an hour every six months (about 0.02% of your time), but not going to the dentist regularly can turn out to be much more inconvenient.
With preventive care, you get to plan around your schedule. If you know your yogi always takes a week off in February to ski the Alps, you can get your checkup at a time you’d normally be doing yoga. Or whatever. The point is that with six months to choose from, you can find one hour that doesn’t impact your schedule too much.
But if you develop a serious dental problem, you have a lot less flexibility. First, you’re trying to find an appointment to get care, which might involve calling lots of dentists to find someone with short-term availability. If you’re not a regular patient, dentists may not have short-term appointments available for you. And once you find a time, you’ll have to take what you can get, even if that conflicts with other commitments.
And instead of being an hour or so, the appointment may be much longer, taking several hours. And in some cases, you may be disabled due to your toothache or other issues beforehand. And, due to anesthesia or sedation, you may not be able to return to work right afterward. Instead of an hour or so every six months, you may end up losing days from your schedule.
Now that’s inconvenient.
It Protects Your Health
But the biggest reason to see your dentist regularly is because it protects your health. Nothing is more expensive or inconvenient than being unhealthy. And if you’re not seeing your dentist regularly, you are putting your oral health and your overall health at risk.
Not seeing your dentist regularly increases your risk of gum disease as well as cavities. And this can dramatically impact your overall health. In fact, recent research confirmed that people who see their dentist regularly are 23% less likely to experience a stroke than those who only went to their dentist when they had a problem.
See Your Dentist Today
Hopefully we’ve convinced you that seeing your dentist regularly is the right way to protect your oral and overall health. It’s inexpensive and it’s convenient. And it will help you keep your beautiful smile for life.
If you’re looking for a dentist in the San Jose area, please call (408) 354-5600 today for an appointment with Dr. Nancy Nehawandian at Top Down Dental in Los Gatos.
