With the Christmas party season in full swing and with NYE just around the corner, everyone is trying to look their best; spray tans, fresh highlights, new lippy, and new outfits. But what about the most important feature – your smile?
We all focus so much on our makeup and beauty products, but how many of us include perfecting our teeth as part of our daily beauty regime? What with constant photos going up on sites like Facebook and Instagram, we really should pay more attention to our teeth...
One of my best friends recently discovered how great flossing was, she already has a killer smile but she says her teeth feel super 'just-from-the-dentist-clean' since incorporating this into her bedtime ritual and now enjoys flashing her gnashers even more. I know it's something we are supposed to do twice daily, but I struggle to brush my teeth for two whole minutes, let alone adding in flossing! Upon this confession, said bestie marched me along to Boots and dragged me to the dental aisle to buy flossettes (like mini catapults which take the hassle out of cutting your own floss string) and I must admit they are fantastic.
I've also ditched my manual brush and started using my Oral-B Pro 3000. It's not like I think my manual brush is better, (far from it), but I think because you just hold the device rather than wearing your arm out with scrubbing, I feel like I'm not getting my teeth as clean, but truly I think I've been putting off switching to electric because it has a timer and therefore I have to do the full two minutes. It's got a great cross action brush and you can literally feel it blasting away the plaque – gross! There's all kinds of brushes available, depending what kind of power you want and what budget you have. I've noticed several places having offers on Oral-B Pro brushes and would say they are definitely worth investing in/adding to late xmas list/snapping up in January sales!
The Bubs team met expert Dr Uchenna Okoye at a recent beauty event (you might recognise her as the miracle cosmetic dentist from C4's Embarrassing Bodies) and she gave us some great tips:
"You should make sure you brush your teeth BEFORE breakfast to get teeth fresh and super clean for the day. Usually we eat something sweet or acidic with breakfast and it will take at least 30 minutes for the negative effects to wear off so brushing straight after means you're brushing the acid into your teeth! Rinsing with a fluoride mouthwash after breakfast is the best course of action and refreshes the mouth."
"Just like THE ultimate sin for your skin is going sleep without taking off your makeup, the worst thing for your teeth is going to bed without that final thorough brush at night. You produce the least amount of saliva at night meaning that your teeth are totally unprotected from plaque attack, so that last brush is crucial."
...so that says it all – get brushing!
CQx
Ps. Remember, in the UK, if you're pregnant or have a baby under one, you're entitled to free NHS dental treatment. It's so important as gums and teeth are particularly vulnerable at this time. Take advantage!
