Fluoride is a commonly used, and very important, ingredient in the world of at-home and professional dental care. Today, our Santa Monica dentists are sharing some information about the ways in which fluoride works, and the ways in which you can incorporate fluoride into your routine. Let’s get started…
Get The Facts
Fluoride is a mineral that is naturally found in water, rocks, and soil. This mineral has a major benefit for dental patients of all ages; it helps to re-mineralize and strengthen dental enamel.
While fluoride shows up in all kinds of things naturally, including water, it doesn’t occur in particularly large quantities. That is why the public water supply in the United States is further enriched with fluoride. Our drinking water contains sufficient amounts of fluoride to support enamel re-mineralization.
Ways To Get Fluoride
It’s likely that you are already getting some of the fluoride you need from drinking water and cleaning your smile twice a day. Additionally, most toothpastes contain fluoride, and many over-the-counter mouth rinses do, too.
There are more potent fluoride formulations available. For the most part these are dentist-prescribed and dentist-administered topical gels and mouth rinses. These options are beneficial for patients with particularly soft enamel or vulnerable teeth.
One Exception
While, generally speaking, fluoride is good for dental health, we do want to be careful about using fluoride with patients who are young enough to regularly swallow toothpaste. Children who ingest too much fluoride as their adult teeth are still growing risk developing dental fluorosis: a condition characterized by enamel discoloration and textural irregularities. So, if your child is still swallowing toothpaste, they should use a formulation that is fluoride-free.
Do you have more questions about the uses of fluoride, or oral hygiene products in general? If so, our Santa Monica dentists are here to talk with you—give our team a call or use the Contact Us page on our site to get started!