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Oral Health in Cold and Flu Season

Live Life Smiling

Oral Health in Cold
  • Holmes and Palmer Orthodontics
  • December 23, 2020

 

WHAT DOES A TOOTHBRUSH have to do with cold and flu season? More than you’d think! It’s never fun to battle a cold or a bout of flu, but that’s no reason to slack off on taking care of our teeth and gums.

Feel Better Through Dental Hygiene

It can feel like a lot of work to keep up with brushing and flossing when we’re not feeling well, but it’s worth it. Maintaining these simple daily habits is still important. They help us feel more normal, refreshed, and rejuvenated, and when we feel unwell, they can give us a small sense of accomplishment that does a lot for our overall sense of wellbeing. And getting rid of more oral bacteria can only help by giving your immune system less work to do!

Stuffy Noses Can Lead to Cavities?

Indirectly, not being able to breathe through our noses does make us more vulnerable to tooth decay. When we’re forced to breathe through our mouths, it dries up our saliva. This can be a major problem because saliva is the first line of defense against harmful oral bacteria. It washes away leftover food particles and keeps our oral pH neutral so that our enamel can stay strong.

Sometimes it’s the medicine we take that dries out our mouths (antihistamines, pain relievers, and decongestants are all big offenders), so make sure to drink plenty of water and breathe through your nose whenever possible.

Why Does Our Breath Smell When We’re Sick?

Have you ever gotten that snotty taste in your mouth when you have a cold? If you can taste it, then it’s probably what your breath smells like, and it comes from post-nasal drip (the excess mucus that leaks down the back of the throat during a runny nose). Bacteria can easily multiply in this situation, resulting in unpleasant smells. There’s one more reason to keep up with brushing and flossing while we’re sick!

Starve Bacteria by Cutting Back on Sugar

Harmful bacteria likes to live in our mouths because it can get plenty of access to its favorite food there: sugar. When we eat sugary cough drops, it might help with the cough, but it’s as bad for our teeth as hard candy. In addition to generally cutting back on sugary foods and drinks, we recommend choosing a sugar-free cough drop for combating a cough.

Likewise, use water or other sugar-free drinks to rehydrate when an illness is using up all your body’s fluids. When we do consume sugar, we should rinse with water after to wash away the leftovers. Drinking plenty of water is particularly important when we have a stomach bug, because it helps protect our teeth from the damage stomach acid can do to them if we’re vomiting frequently.

Bring Us Your Oral Health Questions

If we haven’t answered all your questions about how common illnesses and oral health interact with each other, just let us know! We want to make sure all our patients have the information they need to keep their teeth and gums in good shape, even when they’re not feeling well!

Take care this flu season!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.
The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

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EVERY SMILE TELLS A SPECIAL STORY

We are thankful for the opportunity to serve our community with excellent care and take pride in our mission of having a patient-centered philosophy. Check out what our patients are saying about us!

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Kristin S.
They have been wonderful so far with my daughter the staff is amazing and very friendly and informative
jonathan C.
Super friendly and was always willing to answer any questions we had on our journey with braces. They took time to answer any questions we had.
jonathan C.
Super friendly and was always willing to answer any questions we had on our journey with braces. They took time to answer any questions we had.
Christina S.
Very family friendly atmosphere! Fun office! Love how laid back and kind everyone is! 10/10 recommend!
Christina S.
Very family friendly atmosphere! Fun office! Love how laid back and kind everyone is! 10/10 recommend!
Sheri S.
I got my 1st set of Invisalign at Holmes & Palmer, Huntington office this week. The assistant talked me through the whole process and helped me practice getting them out. Putting them in is not an issue. They are tight. Getting them out the first several times was difficult. The pull tool they gave me didn't have a thin enough point to put under the edge of mine to pop them up. I hope they will give future patients a Pul Bite Me original pultool+chewtool. It has a narrow point that works perfectly. If you don't have long fingernails or don't want to break your nails, it's what you need. Sorry for the sales pitch but I honestly don't think I could get them out on my own without it. I don't have to go back for an appointment until mid October unless I'm having an issue. It's nice not to have to go for tightenings frequently, like my son had to with traditional braces. I called back with a couple of follow up questions and the lady who answered the phone was very helpful. She said she'd worn Invisaligns, also.
Sheri S.
I got my 1st set of Invisalign at Holmes & Palmer, Huntington office this week. The assistant talked me through the whole process and helped me practice getting them out. Putting them in is not an issue. They are tight. Getting them out the first several times was difficult. The pull tool they gave me didn't have a thin enough point to put under the edge of mine to pop them up. I hope they will give future patients a Pul Bite Me original pultool+chewtool. It has a narrow point that works perfectly. If you don't have long fingernails or don't want to break your nails, it's what you need. Sorry for the sales pitch but I honestly don't think I could get them out on my own without it. I don't have to go back for an appointment until mid October unless I'm having an issue. It's nice not to have to go for tightenings frequently, like my son had to with traditional braces. I called back with a couple of follow up questions and the lady who answered the phone was very helpful. She said she'd worn Invisaligns, also.
tiffany S.
Everyone there was very welcoming! They explained everything that would happen with treatment. We can't wait to start the process!
tiffany S.
Everyone there was very welcoming! They explained everything that would happen with treatment. We can't wait to start the process!
Eileen M.
Excellent communication, pleasant front desk. My child LOVES to go to the orthodontist! The Ortho/Dental group make sure that there is always something interactive going on that encourages a positive attitude towards going there. I can’t say enough positive things about their practice with children. 👍🏼
Eileen M.
Excellent communication, pleasant front desk. My child LOVES to go to the orthodontist! The Ortho/Dental group make sure that there is always something interactive going on that encourages a positive attitude towards going there. I can’t say enough positive things about their practice with children. 👍🏼
Shandale D.
My little boy, Daniel has been going here for about a month now and we love it. Super friendly staff, & just an all around friendly environment.
Shandale D.
My little boy, Daniel has been going here for about a month now and we love it. Super friendly staff, & just an all around friendly environment.
Morgan S.
My daughter loves this place, everyone is so nice and welcoming. Would definitely recommend to friends and family.
Morgan S.
My daughter loves this place, everyone is so nice and welcoming. Would definitely recommend to friends and family.
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