Here is what can happen if you don’t brush your teeth regularly

If you’re someone who thinks brushing their teeth daily is not a mandate, then you are highly mistaken. Because there are so many repercussions of missing out on this important habit. The reason being your mouth is a hub for bacteria, and it hardly takes a few hours for them to come back.  

To be precise, there are around 300 types of bacteria that live in your mouth. And none other than the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry testifies it.

According to Dr Anil Kohli, Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, and a patron of SeekMed, good oral hygiene is not only important for healthy teeth and gums, but also for the overall well being of an individual.

“The mouth harbours a lot of bacteria, mostly innocuous. The daily brushing protocol keeps the bacterial level at an optimal level. Failing to follow daily brushing leads to an increase in the bacterial levels, thus causing tooth decay and gum diseases. Another important aspect of a healthy mouth is its direct link to the digestive and respiratory tract of the body. A number of heart and stomach diseases are shown to be related to the increased bacterial levels present in an unhealthy mouth” says Dr Kohli.

Here’s what happens when you stop brushing your teeth

One may think not brushing their teeth is harmless, if skipped for a few days. Well, studies have shown that it just takes 48 hours for soft deposits called plaque to turn into hard deposits called tartar. Once tartar deposits occur on the tooth surface, it becomes difficult to remove it with brushing, resulting in a vicious cycle, resulting in more and more deposits to accumulate on the tooth surface. These deposits then start weakening the tooth structure, give the mouth a bad smell and they also pave a path for other gum diseases.

“By now we know that brushing is important but brushing the right way and at the right time (morning and night) is equally important. Remember brushing in an inadequate, improper and infrequent manner is the same as not brushing at all. One must first learn the right brushing technique and then follow a timed schedule to brush the teeth twice daily,” says Dr Kohli.

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Other non-oral things that can happen to you, if you don’t rush regularly

1. Dementia

An unhealthy mouth can lead to inflammation in the body, which is not a good sign for your mind, according to a research review published in Current Neurology and Neuroscience Reports. And brain inflammation can lead to damage of brain cells that will further lead to dementia.

2. Heart problems

Do you know that according to a study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, people who brush their teeth thrice a day have lesser chances of getting atrial fibrillation and heart failure?

3. Gut problems

When your mouth is full of 300 varieties of good and bad bacteria, then gut issues are inevitable because only one bacteria is enough to toss up your gut health. So, if not thrice then do brush your mouth at least twice a day.
Apart from that flossing, gargling after a meal, and eating fibre rich fruits and veggies can also help you maintain good oral hygiene.

So, stop avoiding brushing your teeth as it hardly takes two to three minutes.