Tips to Achieve the Perfect Valentine’s Day Smile

It’s Valentine’s Day, the day for whispering sweet nothings into loved-ones’ ears and sharing kisses.

If leaning in a little closer has your sweetheart leaning away, your Forster dentist can help!

Here are our tips to help your breath, and your love life, on Valentine’s Day:

Floss and Brush Daily. Flossing may seem like a bit of a hassle, but taking this step is key in eradicating bacteria and avoiding plaque buildup on the teeth.

Flossing dislodges food that your toothbrush cannot reach. If you don’t floss regularly, you most likely have food stuck between your teeth and those bits of food feed bacteria.

The better fed the bacteria in your mouth are, the worse your breath will be.

Get that scale and clean. A good tooth cleaning not only makes your teeth more kissable, but it also removes, bacteria, plaque, and tartar that can sour your breath. There’s still time to schedule your Valentine’s Day cleaning – give us a call!

Stick out your tongue for cleaning. If your breath is a bit less than fresh, it may be time to clean your tongue. Your tongue is covered with a thin coating of mucus that can trap particles of food.

Our Forster Dental Centre staff recommends using a tongue scraper, or your toothbrush with a dab of toothpaste, to gently clean your tongue, working from the back to the front. Do this daily for best results.

Know when NOT to brush. If you’ve had a romantic meal, you might think about heading potential breath odours with a quick brushing. But don’t do it! While brushing is an integral part of dental care, knowing when not to brush can be just as vital.

Acidic foods, such as wine, juice, and soda, erode the enamel of the teeth. This gradual deterioration can lead to discolouration and sensitivity. Make sure to brush before ingesting acidic drinks or wait at least 30 minutes after ingestion to prevent tooth weakening and discolouration.

Avoid smoking. Obviously, cigarettes make the breath smell bad, reducing kissability. But it goes farther than that, as nicotine constricts the blood vessels, which in turn prevents a healthy saliva flow. Without enough saliva, the mouth dries out, and dry mouth is a leading cause of bad breath.

Drink sensibly. This means two things. Don’t drink too much alcohol and drink lots of water.

Choose the ‘right’ sweets. Some sweet foods create more dental issues than others. Foods on the ‘avoid’ list including those that are sticky dissolve slowly or are sucked, such as lollipops, hard candies, toffee, gumdrops, taffy, caramel corn, peanut brittle, dried fruit, chocolate-covered raisins, and some sports bars.

Before Dinner

• Brush, floss, and clean your tongue before you go out to dinner
• Floss one more time before dinner to dislodge food that might have lodged between your teeth during the day.
• Kill existing germs in your mouth with a non-alcohol based mouth rinse.
• Eat dairy-based food for breakfast to support healthy bacteria in your stomach.

During Dinner

• Order “breath-friendly” foods, such as crunchy fruits, vegetables, and dishes without a strong odour. If you can taste a dish in your mouth after eating it, most likely it can be smelled by others.
• Drink lots of water during dinner, particularly if you are also drinking alcohol or coffee.
• Eat that garnish! The herbs that are used to garnish your dinner plate can help neutralise bad breath caused by sulphides emitted by the bacteria in dental plaque.
• When dessert time comes around, avoid rich and fatty desserts like chocolate cake and choose a dessert featuring oranges, berries, or apples, which strengthen your breath by stimulating saliva production.
•  If you can skip the coffee, sip lemon tea. Lemons are natural wonders at keeping breath fresh.
• Bring toothpicks or a flosser and when dinner is done take a trip to the bathroom to ensure that nothing has become stuck between your teeth during dinner. Finish up by rinsing your mouth with water.

After Dinner

• Immediately treat any symptoms of an upset stomach to avoid bad breath, especially if you are an acid reflux sufferer.
• Chew sugarless gum (with xylitol) to diminish lousy breath after eating.

Apply flavoured lip gloss or balm. It might not directly freshen the breath, but it should help disguise the smell when you don’t have a mint or piece of gum at hand.

Here’s a short video “Tips for the Perfect Valentine’s Day Smile from your Forster Dentist”:

Your Local Dentist in Forster

At Forster Dental Centre, we provide each patient with the care that allows them to maintain healthy teeth and a beautiful smile for life!

We offer an extensive range of dental services from preventative dentistry to restorative dental options along with the latest in cosmetic dentistry solutions for straighter and whiter teeth.

We pride ourselves on listening to the needs and concerns of all our patients and aim to provide you with the personalised attention you and your family deserves.

Contact us on (02) 6555 5554 or book your appointment online here.

We are located at 1st Floor Forster Tower, 12 Wallis St in Forster.