Your smile is one of your greatest assets, and ensuring it is taken care of is a feat more complex than many might initially believe. Indeed, your grin is much more than just a gorgeous smile, but serves a great number of purposes and functions. Among these include biting, chewing, eating, and enunciation. Though there are multiple factors out there that can pose a threat to your smile’s integrity, none are quite as common as tooth decay. In today’s blog, your Lake Orion, MI dentist takes a look at the way in which tooth decay progresses, and how you can better care for your teeth.
Primary Causes
It goes without saying that from the time you are born and throughout your adult life, your smile is on the defensive against a barrage of oral health threats. Indeed, your oral health is comprised of all aspects contained within the oral cavity, including your teeth, tongue, gums, cheeks, and throat. As such, your preventive dental routine should include practices that provide care for each of these areas, otherwise you may endure complications down the line.
Among the various factors that can affect your smile, tooth decay has to be the most common. Indeed, it impacts millions of people in the United States every single year, and can affect anyone of any age. Further, decay is considered a process, meaning there are multiple ways you can be affected by it. Fortunately, this also means there are multiple treatment options that can help you, depending on your unique situation. For more information about this process and how our team can help, contact our office today.
It Only Gets Worse Without Treatment
Unlike an upset stomach or even a headache, a toothache will not get better with time. As a matter of fact, the situation will only get worse, and it will not stop until all of your structures have been compromised.
Tooth decay begins when oral bacteria feed off of the remaining particles that come from the foods you consume. Certain items, especially sugar, causes these microorganisms to secrete a destructive acid that erodes the protective layer of enamel surrounding your teeth. This is how a cavity is formed, and without care, the infection will work its way deeper into your inner tooth. Contact our office today to learn more.
Treatments To Mitigate Damage
Though decay is among the most common concerns out there, that does not mean that all hope is lost. In its early stages, the infection can be treated with a composite resin filling. As it progresses deeper into a tooth, a root canal procedure may be more appropriate. If treatment is not sought prior to this point, you may need to consider the benefits of a dental extraction.
Learn More Today
Contact Lake Orion Family Dentistry in Lake Orion, MI by calling 248-693-6213 to schedule your next appointment with our team and learn more about effective oral health care today.
