Treating Painful, Infected Gums
Identifying warning signs that can lead to painful gums is an important way to help prevent gum disease and all the side effects that come with it. Most of us don’t really give our gums the credit they deserve, and often we don’t think much about our gums at all. However, since gums provide fundamental support for our teeth, it’s vital to keep them in good health.
Infected Gums: The Basics
Just about every area of your body is susceptible to infection, including your mouth. An infection in your body should never go untreated, especially infected gums. Not only can infected gums be very painful, they can also be a sign of a more serious condition such as advanced periodontal disease, otherwise known as periodontitis. Since periodontitis has been suggested to be associated with more serious health problems such as heart disease and other conditions (1), it’s important to treat infected gums quickly.
Causes of Infected Gums
Periodontal disease can be caused by a number of factors. In many cases, mild gum disease may go unnoticed since there aren’t always obvious warning signs. (2) This can allow untreated gum disease to progress over time to more advanced periodontal disease, known as periodontitis, resulting in infected gums. That’s why it’s important to see a dental professional at least twice a year to make sure your teeth and gums remain in good health.
In addition to poor oral hygiene, common causes of gum disease and infected gums can include the use of tobacco, oral contraceptives, defective fillings or dental work that doesn’t fit properly, crooked teeth, or the use of certain medications.
Preventing Infected Gums
The best way to help prevent infected gums is to keep your teeth and gums healthy to avoid infected gums.
- Help prevent infected gums by brushing. Brush your teeth twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste such as any of the Crest Pro-Health Toothpastes. Four of the Crest Pro-Health toothpastes (Clean Mint, Clean Cinnamon, Night and Whitening) are the only ones that are accepted by the ADA for six different benefits: fighting cavities, plaque, sensitivity and gingivitis, whitening teeth, and reducing bad breath. All Crest Pro-Health toothpastes are triclosan free.
- Floss your teeth daily. Be sure to get in between each and every tooth to remove food particles that cause plaque and tartar build-up, and can eventually lead to infected gums.
- Visit a dental professional at least twice a year for a professional cleaning. This will remove tartar buildup that you can’t take care of at home. Tartar buildup can lead to more plaque buildup on and around the tartar in hard to clean areas which can be bad for your gums.
Maintaining healthy gums and avoiding infected gums can be easy if you make oral hygiene a priority every day. By brushing and flossing daily, you can significantly reduce your risk of gum disease and infected gums, in addition to tooth decay and other oral health problems. Start a diligent routine and stick to it, and you will benefit from these healthy habits.