As a child, I was told several things such as what not to do and what not to eat in order to protect my teeth. Naturally, I believed it and stayed clear of almost everything in the fear of having to visit a dentist, I outgrew some of those myths like for instance, the one about the tooth fairy buying your tooth at night and the one where the dentist will remove your teeth if you eat candy, but there are a quite a few myths that we still might believe in. So here are some misconceptions you’ve probably come across.

• Keeping painkiller on your tooth will help relieve painIbuprofen certainly helps to soothe your toothache for a few hours but in order for it to work, you should swallow the tablet instead of keeping it in between your teeth. Keeping it on your tooth can actually harm your gums and destroy your enamel.
  • Clean your teeth immediately after every meal

    This is a big no-no, the sugar in your foods is converted to acid, so at this point, your teeth are pretty weak so brushing it at this state can do more damage than good. It would erode your enamel so as a rule of thumb, always wait at least an hour after meals to brush your teeth. And now we come to another common misconception that most of us probably already know, brushing your teeth harder will clean it better and make it whiter. Brushing it harder would only damage the protective layer of your teeth and lead to tooth sensitivity.

    • Root canal therapy is extremely painfulWell, this was something I truly believed and didn’t allow the treatment to be done without the aid of sleep dentistry, but many others have confirmed that it doesn’t hurt that bad. The idea that it hurts comes from early treatment methods used which are now replaced with less painful methods.
      • Teeth whitening is bad!Well, it is bad if you use over the counter products as they are harsh and tend to dry out your teeth but this can be avoided if it’s done under the supervision of a professional like your family dentist Cheltenham.
        • No dental visits till you feel the painWell, this is a very popular theory among many of us, but it’s something you should avoid doing if you want to save your tooth and some money. Dental visits are mandatory at least twice a year in order to clean up your teeth and check for possible cavities that haven’t caused you any pain yet.