Your dog’s dental health is so important for his total well-being… and for guaranteeing him a long and happy life. So don’t give him the brush-off! Make tooth cleaning a daily ritual that your dog will look foward to as something the two of you do together.

To start, you’ll have to get your doggy used to you fumbling around in his mouth. Ease him into it with a total-body pat-down; a chassis inspection that ideally should be performed on him each day. Have him sit while you examine his body to make sure everything is in working order and there aren’t any weird objects or critters lodged in unexpected places. Run your hands over his back and sides. Lift each paw and check the pads of his feet and between his toes. Gently lift his ears and peek inside. (If you see something peeking back at you, run away quickly!)

When you get to his mouth, approach with caution. Gently pull his lips back for a view of that magnificent gumline. Your dog’s teeth should be cushioned snugly by a set of pink gums. A healthy gumline is naturally bumpy… so if your dog’s gums appear straight rather than wavy, inflamed and/or cover most of the tooth surface, that’s a sign of trouble ahead. When WAS the last time you were in for a checkup?

If your dog is getting, well, long in the tooth, it’s probably a good idea to take him for a dental workup at the vet’s office before you officially start your daily dental hygiene routine at home. Either way, discuss dental hygiene with your vet before beginning a daily toothcare regimen.

Okay: it’s time to introduce your pal to "tooth brushing a la human." You can purchase a dog toothbrush at your local Petsmart or other pet store. Try the traditional people-style brush with a handle, or if you’re sure you won’t lose a hand in his mouth, go for the rubber finger cap toothbrush that fits right over the tip of your index finger. Buy special dog toothpaste which comes in delightful flavors that appeal to dogs, like beef and chicken and the ever-popular cat flavor (joke). You can also brush his teeth with a salt water solution. Whatever you do… do NOT brush your dog’s teeth with people toothpaste. He can’t be taught to spit like a human, and people toothpaste is most definitely harmful if swallowed.

Offer your dog a little taste of the special dog toothpaste to get him used to it. Let him take a few licks and nibbles of the toothbrush. When he’s finished sampling the goods, nudge the brush into his mouth. Brush in circular motions along and under the gum line, paying extra attention to the upper molars in back. This is where plaque accumulates the most rapidly. Go from back to front, and be patient! This is a new and strange sensation for your dog, and he may even try to play a little tug of war with the toothbrush since you’re at the other end of it. Don’t expect a miracle the first time you try to brush your dog’s teeth. Next time should be a bit easier, and the time after that even moreso.

Train your dog to associate tooth-brushing with fun times. Talk to him and make it fun! When he’s all finished and showing off those freshly buffed fangs of his, give him a crunchy treat that also does double-duty as a plaque controller. Take him out for his daily walk. Tell him what a good boy he is! In time, he’ll grow to accept toothbrushing as just another pleasant ritual in his doggy day.

Copyright 2005 Dina Giolitto. All rights reserved.

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"Remember to floss your teeth," dentists say, but many of us forget their advice. Not only that, we don’t understand why we’re supposed to floss our teeth. We don’t know that failing to floss leads to a dental domino effect: tartar, plaque, gingivitis, periodontitis, and teeth falling out. Yikes!

Accordng to a recent Harris Poll of 1,000 adults 35 years old and older, 60% of those surveyed knew little about gum disease. You may not know much about gum disease or even care about it. Many of us put flossing at the bottom of our "To Do" list. Here are eight reasons to put flossing at the top.

1. Flossing helps you to clean back teeth that are hard to reach, the areas between your teeth and under your gum line. (www.floss.com/flossing.htm, "Flossing: A New Secret to Good Health?")

2. Regular flossing helps to dislodge the 500 kinds of bacteria that thrive in your mouth. (www.MayoClinic.com, "Oral Health and Overall Health: Why a Healthy Mouth is Good for Your Body")

3. Tartar, a major cause of bad breath and cavities, can start to build up in only 24 hours. Flossing, combined with professional cleaning, helps to keep these things from happening. (US Food and Drug Administration, "Fighting Gum Disease: How to Keep Your Teeth")

4. Flossing helps to prevent plaque (bacteria) build-up in your mouth. (www.MayoClinic.com, "Oral Health and Overall Health: Why a Healthy Mouth is good for Your Body")

5. Regular flossing helps to prevent gingivitis, an inflamation of the gums that causes them to bleed, swell, and turn red or redish-purple. (www.MedlinePlus, "Gingivitis")

6. Untreated gingivitis can develop into periodontitis, a condition that causes your gums to pull away from your teeth. Flossing helps to prevent this from happening. (US Food and Drug Administration, "Fighting Gum Disease: How to Keep Your Teeth")

7. New research findings suggest that regular flossing helps to prevent heart disease. "Researchers have found that people with periodontal disease are almost twice as likely to suffer from coronary artery disease as those without periodontal disease." (American Academy of Periodontology, www.perio.org/consumer.mbc.heart.htm, "Heart Disease and Stroke")

8. Daily flossing helps you to keep your teeth and your smile. (US Food and Drug Adinistration, "Fighting Gum Disease: How to Keep Your Teeth")

Tape this list to your bathroom mirror, read it every day, and floss your teeth. Dentists recommend flossing after every meal. You’re the boss so get your kids to floss. Then everyone in the family can have a happy smile.

Copyright 2006 by Harriet Hodgson

http://www.harriethodgson.com

Harriet Hodgson has been a nonfiction writer for 27 years and is a member of the Association of Health Care Journalists. Her 24th book, "Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief," written with Lois Krahn, MD, is available from http://www.amazon.com A five-star review of the book is also posted on Amazon. You’ll find another review on the American Hospice Association website under the "School Corner" heading.

Many people do not brush their cats teeth often enough, some have never done it. If your cat’s teeth are not brushed, bacteria will build up and could result in loss of teeth. You should brush your cat’s teeth every week. If you have a kitten you should start brushing when all of its 36 teeth have grown which is around 6 months of age. If you have an adult cat, introduce slowly and keep the sessions short.

You can buy special toothbrushes designed for cats but a child’s toothbrush will be just as good, just make sure the bristles are soft so they do not cut the gums. Do not use normal toothpaste because it will cause digestive problems and make your cat sick. You can buy special cat toothpaste from your pet shop, vet or online.

To properly brush your cat’s teeth start by gently brushing the outer surface of the teeth. Do not brush the inside of the teeth until your cat is used to the process. Brush in a circular motion from the bottom of the gum to the tips of the teeth. Some cats require professional cleaning when there is a severe build up of tartar. When brushing your cat’s teeth note the condition of your cat’s gums.

Consult your vet if the gums are swollen, if there is any bleeding, bad breath, drooling, dark spots, sores, refusal to open mouth or reluctance to eat. If your cat has any of these symptoms there is a chance that it has gum disease. Gum disease is common in cats and can be fatal unless treated. It begins with the build up of plaque and tartar which causes the roots to become infected. This can be prevented by regular brushing.

If you liked what you read here, visit http://www.petguide-online.com for more information on all aspects of caring for your pets. The site consists of a huge range of detailed information on cats, dogs, birds and fish.

The toothbrush is an important usable cleaning instrument, which we use regularly. Most people start their morning with the use of a toothbrush. It is not confirmed when the first toothbrush was invented, however it is supposed that around 3000 BC the first toothbrush came up in the form of a chew stick, which was used by ancient civilians. It was in the shape of a slim stick with a frayed end. Another early form of toothbrush was the bristle toothbrush. It was similar to what we use today, but this toothbrush was made up of solid hog’s hairs connected to a handle made of bamboo or bone. The nylon-bristled toothbrush was introduced in 1938, and was rapidly accepted due to its good oral hygiene quality.

A revolution came in the market of America with the origin of electric toothbrushes in 1960. These toothbrushes were sold and produced on a mass level throughout the country.

Initially, the electronic toothbrush along with charger was invented in 1939 in Switzerland, but it did not come out in the open market until 1960. It was in 1961 when the company ‘General Electric’ came up with the rechargeable cordless toothbrush. The first rotary toothbrush, called the ‘Interplak’ became available to the general public in 1987. It was available in different models and varieties. It was believed that the Interplak was capable to eliminate plaque, and could prevent gingival bleeding better than other manual toothbrushes.

Nowadays, a number of varieties of toothbrushes can be found in the market at a large scale. Toothbrushes are used with fluoride for cleaning. Generally, dentists recommend the use of soft toothbrushes because hard toothbrushes can cause damage to your teeth. Soft bristles are also considered good at eliminating plaque and debris from the teeth. Besides this, dentists recommend the use of a small-handled toothbrush, as it can reach easily at each and every corner of your mouth. Toothbrushes are generally made of synthetic materials.

As there is such a wide variety of toothbrushes available today, this can create confusion for you when buying. Therefore it is necessary to consider that what kind of toothbrush will best suit your teeth. As an alternative, you can also use a powered toothbrush for cleaning your teeth, especially if you experience difficulties during brushing. You should replace your toothbrush within three months.

It is important that you are using a good quality toothbrush and changing it frequently. Undoubtedly, you would not like to have any diseases in your teeth, so by brushing regularly you can maintain healthy teeth as well as an attractive smile.

Stefan Rockhaus provides health-related information - Visit toothbrush guide for further toothbrush information. - You may reprint this article as long as no changes are made, and this resource box is left intact.

Electric Tooth Brushes are great for your dental health. Like any other electronic item it also requires some basic accessories to work with.

Electric toothbrush timers.- are the features included in the Electric Tooth Brush to give their users an idea of how long to brush. Usually people don’t brush effectively is because they do not brush long enough. And this will take care of this problem. The Tooth Brush timers can measure Brushing duration, indicating the total available time remaining out of the brushing time. The other types are more specific in pointing out the brushing time for each of the quadrants of your Mouth.

The Electric toothbrush power settings provide for an option that sets the power of the brushing action of the brush to either a “high” or “low” level or the user can set the same as per his requirements. The latest Electric Tooth Brushes have options for brush heads and they allow different types and shapes of Brush heads to be used as per the user’s preferences.

The brush Head is another accessory and usually you get the required brush head along with the Brush and in case the head supplied with the Brush is not suitable then you can buy it as an accessory. When the Tooth brush is to be used by all your family members then you must have a Brush head storage provision as well as means for color coding them.

The brush heads have to be replaced at least 3 to 6 months once if not worn out earlier, and the additional brush heads can be bought as accessories. Electric Toothbrush pressure sensors have been incorporated into the design of Brushes as a safety feature. If the brush user applies too much force the brush will automatically stall or stop. If you find that brushing with excessive force has been a problem for you in the past this may be a feature that is important for your situation.

The charging apparatus for the Electric Toothbrush is a must and it comes along with the Tooth brush with some models and for others we have to buy as separate item. Some of the items come with indicator gauges into the design of their toothbrushes so to help you evaluate the degree to which the battery’s charge has been depleted, so you’ll know when to recharge it.

John Gibb is the owner of electric toothbrush sources , For more information on electric toothbrushes check out http://www.Electric-ToothBrush-guidance-and-info.info

Electric Toothbrushes can help to motivate a person to brush as we see that really bad brushers do not have enough motivation to brush well. But with an electric Tooth brush he will brush longer, more frequently, or both. A person might take a greater interest in brushing because they see evidence that their Electric toothbrush is cleaning their teeth much more effectively than when they brush with a manual Toothbrush.

An electric Toothbrush can be an effective aid in the fight against Gum disease. The use of an electric toothbrush, either high-end rotary or sonic, has been shown to improve the oral health of those persons who have periodontal disease, and the use of the Electrical tooth brush has made much improvements to their disease conditions.

It should be noted that the gingivitis causing bacteria live in the gaps between the teeth and the gums. Using an electric tooth brush at higher speeds these will be flushed out thereby giving more opportunities to improvements in the Dental diseases.

Electric toothbrushes can help to remove or minimize tooth staining. Using of electric toothbrushes minimizes tooth staining. Nowadays everybody wants to have white teeth. But it must be noted that the color of your teeth is determined by the intrinsic color of your teeth and the extrinsic staining of the teeth.

The scrubbing effect of an electric toothbrush, over time and with continued use, can dislodge some or possibly even all of the surface stain found on a tooth and therefore have a whitening effect. In order to have better results your electric toothbrush must be allowed to scrub for a few extra seconds each time you brush in those areas where staining tends to accumulate.

The extrinsic staining or the "surface stain." also determines the coloration of your teeth and you can find that this type of discoloration has been removed after you have had a professional dental cleaning. Extrinsic staining lies on the surface of a tooth.

You may find that in some areas the staining that has formed is too heavy or tenacious to be completely removed by your electric toothbrush and can only be removed by having a professional dental cleaning. The abrasive effect of the dentist’s or hygienist’s hand tools and cleaning pastes can scrub this surface stain off.

However, once removed it would be expected that the use of an electric toothbrush would be able to eliminate or at least significantly minimize the gradual return of staining to these areas.

John Gibb is the owner of electric toothbrush sources , For more information on electric toothbrushes check out http://www.Electric-ToothBrush-guidance-and-info.info

Electrical Tooth Brushes help in keeping your teeth and gums healthy and clean. The dental health depends on how you brush your teeth and the type of Brush you use for the same.

Brushing is one’s daily habit and it should be done compulsorily and must be done in a proper way. Certain points should be noted while brushing like the amount of time taken and tools involved. Let’s review about the fact whether electrical Toothbrushes are good for proper cleaning of teeth.

The results have proved that great number of People who brush with a manual Toothbrush find it difficult to consistently Brush using adequate technique when compared to electric Toothbrushes. The modern electric Toothbrushes are tools which can create an effective brushing action. All a person must do is focus on brushing long enough with an electric Brush as the skill level that is needed to brush properly with an electric brush is minimal.

When electric Toothbrush is compared to manual tooth Brush, manual toothbrush requires certain things such as manual dexterity and some diligence, which are often in short supply. A good electric Toothbrush will probably clean more thoroughly than brushing by hand in those cases where the skills needed for manual brushing are deficient. So if more time is spent in brushing with electric Toothbrush rather than manual Toothbrush then they will probably get more cleaning accomplished.

The subject of one research shows the superiority of modern Electric Toothbrushes over manual Toothbrushes. This study evaluated the plaque removing efficiency of three different electric Toothbrushes vs. brushing by hand over various time periods ranging from 30 seconds up to 6 minutes. The study found that the use of all three electric Toothbrushes was more effective than brushing manually, for all of the time periods evaluated.

They also determined that more dental Plaque was dislodged with an electric Toothbrush in 2 minutes of use than a manual Toothbrush used for 6 minutes. The use of an electric Toothbrush is superior to the use of a manual one as per the clinical research. Ability to remove dental Plaque and a concurrent reduction of gingivitis are the criteria that are usually used to make this determination of the brush.

Several studies review the superiority of electric Toothbrushes over manual ones. The certain studies review that manual brushing is superior than electric brushing whereas some studies review that electric brushing is superior to manual brushing. Most of the studies have come to the conclusion that electric brushing is superior to manual brushing. Hence use electric brushing in order to reduce your pressure and get an effective cleaning.

John Gibb is the owner of electric toothbrush sources , For more information on electric toothbrushes check out http://www.Electric-ToothBrush-guidance-and-info.info

Now let’s talk about other means of hygiene of the oral cavity. They include special strings which are intended for clarification of the space between teeth. Use dental strings. Many people believe that dental strings serve only to remove a piece of the got stuck meat or corn from the teeth. Actually, it is the best way to clear the surface between the teeth or above the line of gums.

Here are the rules of correct to usage of dental strings:

1. To begin with take a string and reel up its longer part on a middle or index finger of your hand (on what finger is more convenient for you ).
2. Reel up the rest of the string on a finger of the other hand. On each tooth it is necessary to use a new site of a string.
3. Clamp the string between the thumbs and index finger, having left between them only a three-centimeter site. The string should be well strained.
4. Do cautious "sawing" movements, dragging the string between your teeth. Be careful not to have the string run into the gentle surface of the gums.
5. When you reach the line of the gums, accurately roll the string in the form of the letter "C" so that it fitted a tooth. Cautiously clean the space between the tooth and the gum.
6. Carry on the string upwards from the gum and clean a lateral side of the tooth. Remember that it is necessary for removal of the tooth deposit, that the string should closely adjoin the tooth. After you extend the string, use a clean site of the dental string for clearing the interdental space from the side of the other tooth.
7. Do not forget to clean the teeth from the back side.

Do not worry about wax. Do not hesitate about the question what strings to choose - with wax or without. Take those which are more convenient for you. Fragrant strings are good, especially if you use them frequently.

If it is difficult for you to use the dental string, or your fingers suffer from arthritis, buy special coils or holders for a string which are sold in drugstores.

Address for consultation to the stomatologist, if you have questions how to use a dental string correctly.

It is necessary to use a dental string after each meal.

A couple of words about toothpicks. Some people use them for removal of the rests of food from interdental spaces and from carious cavities. But it is possible to injure the gums. With the skilful usage of the dental string the gums are injured less. Also it is possible to break a toothpick in carious cavities; such cases are not individual, thus patients did not notice, how they broke toothpicks.

Find out how you can gain access to Tooth Whitening Articles and tips at Care of Teeth

The tooth-brush seldom causes ideas that this or that design, this or that bristle, hardness, the form of the handle and other details can influence health somehow. Stomatologists radically disagree with this. The following article is about what kind of tooth-brushes may be and how to choose this useful bagatelle.

Today tooth-brushes are a subject of obligatory certification on several parameters. Firstly, it is hardness. The following kinds of brushes are distinguished: hard, medium and soft. Some companies produce extra soft brushes. Hard brushes may be used by the people sure about their strong gums. Such brushes provide the most powerful massage of the gums. As for the cleaning force of a bristle, it depends on the hardness in the least degree. It is better to prefer soft and extra soft tooth-brushes in the case of often bleeding of the gums not to hurt more the injured gums. The brushes of medium hardness are created as though especially for those who doubts what to choose.

The second thing which is worth attention is a bristle. Today stomatologists are unanimous in their bad opinion about the natural components such as in the swine bristle. Usually this kind of the bristle leaves the cell in the head of the brush much earlier than the first cleaning of teeth comes to the end.

Modern materials of which brushes are made opposite to their natural relatives are not stratified, do not leave the place and microbes appear in them more seldom. Besides, modern technologies have allowed making the indicating bristle. So, in some models of brushes the special gradually disappearing paint signals the owner that it is time to go to the shop or drugstore with the purpose of purchase of a new copy is used.

The bristle should be accurately cut and be near to the edge of the plastic head. Brushes with two-level set bristles possess the greater cleaning ability concerning interdental intervals. In these sites almost in half of cases the caries appears.

Thirdly it is necessary to pay attention to the brush design. The rubber panels prevent the sliding in hands, thus, warning traumas of the gums at intensive movements of the hands. The reduction of pressure on the gums is promoted by the bend of the brush – the "spiral" or the "ball", placing near to the cleaning surface. Sometimes the producers use the lengthening of the handle for pressure decrease on gums.

As for the form it is better to prefer the "rounded" forms because they have fewer chances to injure the mucous membrane of the mouth. The size can be selected according to the volume of the mouth. If you feel while cleaning your teeth that there is practically no more place in your mouth, it is necessary to get a brush of smaller size. The cleaning head should not be large, otherwise the efficiency of cleaning is reduced.

Mechanical brushes, as stomatologists approve, are created for the lazybones. They may be bought, if your family (or single) budget allows it.

I think, it isn’t a secret for anybody that it is necessary to clean teeth at least twice a day. Optimum, if you manage to do it every time after your meal. If the tooth-brush is not accessible, after eating it is possible to use a chewing gum. Though this product clears only the chewing surfaces of teeth, it causes the powerful allocation of saliva which washes off the rests of food from the surface of teeth.

Find out how you can gain access to Tooth Whitening Articles and tips at Care of Teeth

Try the tooth-pastes preventing the formation of the dental tartar.

If you have the dental stone, such tooth-pastes will help you. It does not stop the formation of the dental stone, but considerably slows down this process (on 30 - 40 percents).

Does the tooth-paste protect from the caries?

While cleaning the teeth the main thing is that you should know the correct technics of this procedure, the paste plays here only a supporting role.

Use tooth-pastes which contain fluorine. Why with fluorine? It is well combined with the substances contained in saliva, and promotes strengthening of teeth, preventing the disease of caries both by children, and by adults. You may be sure, that you won’t have caries, but with the years the line of gums alights, exposing roots of teeth, which do not have enough protective enamel. It promotes destruction of teeth.

The whitening paste.

The whiteness of the teeth lost because of nicotine effect, tea or red wine may be returned with the help of the paste possessing the bleach – a rough grinding substance which works as abrasive paper and can damage the tooth enamel.

The teeth which are yellowish from the birth or having lost their inherent whiteness because of the use of some medicines can’t be saved even with the bleach.

The tooth-pastes with the bleaches should be used as seldom as possible only under the conditions when you begin a struggle with some bad habit, such as smoking, for example.

Don’t rely on the “miracle-making” rinsing liquids.

The tooth stone and scurf can’t be removed by the simple rinsing. The TV-adds look so attractive: a drink of the liquid, some rinsing movements, and all the scurf disappears.

Find out how you can gain access to Tooth Whitening Articles and tips at Care of Teeth