The American Dental Association recommends visiting your dentist at least twice a year to help keep your teeth and gums looking and feeling their best. Regular preventive exams and cleanings not only polish up those pearly whites, but they can also help you stop more serious conditions like periodontal disease before they have a chance to get worse. Here’s how you can use your dental insurance coverage to safeguard your gums and keep your smile strong all year long!
Why Are My Gums So Important?
Although they play a central role in your oral health, gums don’t always get a lot of credit for everything they do to keep your smile looking its best. While it may seem like it’s just there for decoration, your periodontal tissue helps anchor your teeth in place on your jaw. Your gums not only allow your body to absorb nutrients, but they also protect the roots of the teeth from things like dangerous oral bacteria, plaque, and food debris that could cause cavities, decay, and even permanent loss.
How Do Regular Dental Exams Protect Your Gums?
When examining your gums, your oral health team is looking out for changes like redness or swelling, abscesses that could indicate an infection, recession along the base of the teeth, persistent bad breath, and even bleeding when flossing or measuring the gingival pockets.
The first stage of periodontal disease is known as gingivitis. This condition can often be reversed by improving your oral hygiene routine, including flossing and brushing more often. Regular visits to your dentist can help keep you abreast of changes that could indicate gingivitis, helping to prevent it from advancing to an irreversible stage of gum disease. If it’s discovered that you’ve already developed a more serious form of periodontitis, your dentist can treat it before it does more damage to your teeth and gums.
How Can I Use My Dental Insurance to Keep My Gums Healthy?
Although every policy is different, most dental insurance plans include an exam and cleaning every six months per calendar year. These appointments are more than just an opportunity for your dental team to clean your teeth, they’re also the perfect time to evaluate the health of your periodontal tissue, including diagnosing any of the stages of gum disease.
Unfortunately, it can be very easy to miss changes in the gums on your own and skipping your routine dental exams could potentially cause you to miss important warning signs that could put your smile at risk!
Remember, your gums aren’t just decorations for your teeth. They serve an extremely important purpose and should be properly cared for to ensure they continue to safeguard your smile for a lifetime. So, don’t let your dental insurance benefits go to waste! Schedule your preventive exams and cleaning before the year ends, so you can enjoy all the benefits of a healthy smile in 2026 and beyond!
About Our Practice
At Healthy Smiles Dental, Dr. Tabbah and Dr. Douglas are pleased to welcome all dental insurance plans! In fact, whether we’re in-network with your plan, or out-of-network, we’re pleased to offer the same high quality, skilled, compassionate care no matter what treatment you’re receiving. Keep your gums looking and feeling their best by scheduling your biannual dental checkup and cleaning before your dental insurance benefits reset in January by visiting our website or calling 508-984-8100.