When a woman becomes pregnant, she will go through a rush of emotions. You will be feeling overwhelmed because you will be sensing a range of changes in your body. This includes oral hygiene which will get impacted. However at this time, it becomes even more important that your dental care in pregnancy is looked after.
This is highly important and you need to keep your daily hygiene in check as even at this stage if you adapt a healthy regime, you are likely to have a very healthy baby.
In this article, I am going to be talking about ways in which you can ensure your pregnancy and oral hygiene are interlinked allowing you to have a good pregnancy which allows for your teeth to remain healthy, protecting from any oral diseases that may incur.
So read on to know how oral health and pregnancy need to be controlled and taken care of.
Importance of Dental Visits in Pregnancy
There is no denying how important it is to pay frequent dental visits. They are needed to keep your oral hygiene in order, allowing for you to monitor and examine any changes that are incurring in the mouth. So it becomes even more important that you visit your dentist when you are carrying a baby inside.
It is also essential to let your doctor know what month you are in so to ensure your visits are as per your health condition and situation. For some cases, like high-risk pregnancy, it is highly recommended that you visit your doctor frequently.
They will need definite overview and advice on how to manage their pregnancy in a better way. There are also certain medications they may have to go on to manage the condition. So make your visits as frequent as possible.
How Pregnancy Impacts Dental Health
Your pregnancy definitely plays a major role when it comes to how it will be changing the mechanism of dental care. One thing that happens during pregnancy is that you will notice some hormonal changes in the body. When this happens, you are more prone to getting bacteria.
Your mouth is no exception in the same. In fact you will be getting a stronger onset of bacteria and this will be creating tender gums. And when that happens you are at a higher risk of gum diseases.
This will also lead to you having more of dental issues and can lead to even tooth decay as your enamel will begin to deteriorate in the process.
Dental Concerns to Monitor:
Now let me get into some of the major dental concerns which you should be looking into and keeping a close check on:
- Having gum inflammation is possible. And it happens more likely during your second trimester. It is at this time that your gums will be completely swollen and you will feel a tenderness in them. Also it is common that you will suffer from bleeding when you are brushing and flossing your teeth.
- There is also the issue of plaque buildup. In many cases, if you are not brushing and flossing regularly, chances are your body cannot fight off this plaque and bacteria buildup as strongly as when your teeth are healthy. This will lead to many concerns in the mouth. Among them gingivitis can happen too.
- Make a habit to use a good, antimicrobial mouthwash which helps to keep the plaque at bay. You will need to visit a good dentist who will be providing you regular, dental check-ups which lead to your dental care in pregnancy coming at a manageable state.
- While there is no proof that pregnancy can actually cause periodontal disease, it is true that if you leave any gum issues like tenderness, it will lead to the situation getting worse. And when that happens- you can get such gum diseases.
Am I Causing More Complications?
As it turns out, there are several things which you can keep an eye on and monitor. As your dental health is impacted so drastically, there are some changes in the body which will be hitting on how your teeth and gums will be getting impacted in the process. These changes are:
- There is a change in hormones including progesterone and estrogen when you are expecting. These will directly impact your oral health.
- Your eating habits also matter. Some people will definitely be consuming certain kinds of foods during the pregnancy which are what we call cravings. But usually these kinds of food types are not healthy for you. And they will definitely be affecting your dental health.
- It is true that nausea increases during pregnancy. And when this happens, your gums will become even more tender. This leads to you brushing and flossing even less. All these habits will make your teeth even more sensitive. So it is best that you do brush but do so with a toothbrush with soft bristles.
Symptoms of Dental Problems During Pregnancy:
So how do you know whether there is something not quite right in your oral health? You can definitely look at the signs and symptoms which point that you need to have a dentist visit and real soon:
- Bad breath is common. Despite brushing, you will be having an odd smell in the mouth which just doesn’t go away.
- Loose teeth can also occur in such circumstances. It is something you will notice when you take a bite out of your food.
- Mouth sores or ulcers are also a condition that can happen in certain cases. This includes having lumps on the gums which just get worse as the time passes.
- Having spaces in teeth is also a symptom. You need to get a visit to the dentist soon to look into such conditions.
- Receding gums is a sign that something isn’t quite right. This is basically when your gums will be pulling away from the teeth. And when it happens, your roots of teeth can become even more visible. Sometimes the condition can be even worse when you have pus along the gum lines.
- Having gums which are swollen and tender as well as bleed easily is a definite cause for concern.
- Having toothaches is common. You should visit the dentist often to see what this may be relating to.
- Nausea is also something which is common in a pregnancy. But it can also take place due to suffering from poor oral hygiene when you are pregnant.
Prevention of Dental Problems in Pregnancy
So now that you have learned and gotten to know of the various issues that can happen while you are pregnant, let’s now highlight what to do about it.
Good news is by applying certain factors into your health regime, you can ensure that your dental health is in check and you will not suffer from any major complications.
- The first thing to know about dental care in pregnancy is ensuring that if you have gotten pregnant, make a first visit to the dentist at your earliest.
- Check with your doctor on all the medicines you are taking. It will be including prescription medicines and over the counter. Depending on your health and condition, your doctor will advice if you should be continuing the same or not.
- When it comes to having a high-risk pregnancy, make sure you meet up with your doctor and discuss ways in which you will keep your health in optimal condition. This is essential for the baby’s health and growth.
- Dental checkups before and during a pregnancy are very important.
- You should also adapt daily teeth cleaning practices so that no complication can arise. This is also true after the pregnancy.
- Make a habit to brush your teeth with a fluoride toothpaste. Do so twice in a day and again with very soft bristles of a toothbrush.
- Sometimes because of nausea, you will not be up to brushing your teeth regularly. In such cases there’s another solution- make use of antacids and rinse your mouth.
- You can also create your own mixture by mixing a baking soda spoon with 1 cup of water and gargling. This will keep your teeth in a healthy state and protect them from plaque and bacteria buildup.
- Limit your sweet intake. This is something that you can easily manage. Just limit your junk good intake and your dental care in pregnancy will get a major boost.
Takeaway
Having health conditions when pregnant are common. Dental care in pregnancy is very important. If your oral hygiene is not in order, it can lead to a lot of complications and problems for you and your baby. In this article, I talked about and shared details on how you can manage a healthy pregnancy by adapting certain oral habits which will give you great results in no time. All you need to ensure is that you are keeping your health and oral fitness in proper check. It all comes down to how are you playing your role in maintaining dental fitness as ignoring the same can lead to severe complications and problems for you.
