How to Take Care of Dental Crowns?

An accident or decay-damaged tooth may be covered with a tooth-shaped cap called a dental crown. A crown is made to safeguard the remaining healthy tooth, enhance your overall look, and make it simpler for you to eat and speak.

It’s crucial to take good care of your dental crown whether you’ve had one for a while or recently had one put in to avoid damage. A dental crown typically lasts for ten years. By taking good care of your crowns, you may increase their lifespan and avoid pain or injury. While maintaining a crown isn’t difficult, there are several critical steps to do if you want to keep it sturdy for as long as you can.

Bad Habits You Need to Avoid

When wearing a crown, it’s vital to stay away from certain items, such as the following:

Harsh Food Temperatures

You could find that your teeth are particularly sensitive to high temperatures just after getting your new crown. This is typical, and the majority of individuals discover that it passes quickly. Avoid eating meals that are extremely cold or hot as much as you can. For instance, wait until your tea or coffee has cooled before consuming it. Never bite into a popsicle or ice cream bar, and never chew on ice. In order to reduce your irritation while your mouth gets used to the new crown, your dentist will likely suggest using toothpaste made for sensitive teeth.

Contact your dentist right away if you detect an increased sensitivity to cold or hot meals and your crown is not brand-new. Sudden tooth sensitivity may not always be an issue, but it could also be an indication of an infection or other issue with the tooth beneath the crown. Your dentist can locate the cause of your soreness and provide the appropriate care. They can provide advice on how to lessen the distress of dental sensitivity if there isn’t a clear reason.

Sticky or Hard Foods

This advice is applicable to those who do not have crowns, but it is considerably more crucial if you do. Nuts, sweets, gum, and ice are examples of items that can pull or press at your crown, increasing the chance that it could pop out or sustain damage over time.

Although avoiding nuts and gum may seem apparent, there are several less obvious foods that might harm dental crowns, including steaks, dried fruits, crunchy vegetables, and popcorn. Some of these items, such as steak, can be chewy and challenging if not prepared properly, making them challenging to eat. This suggests that you might need to exercise caution while consuming sensitive beef pieces. Some items, like raw carrots and gum, can be best avoided entirely.

Brushes and Toothpaste That are Abrasive

Many kinds of toothpaste and toothbrushes available today contain abrasives made of silica, chalk, charcoal, or other substances. This comprises the majority of whitening toothpaste in addition to the more recent charcoal-infused toothpaste and brush craze.

Such toothpaste and toothbrushes are primarily made to remove plaque and other substances from your teeth that could be turning them yellow. Even while many dentists are wary of using these items on healthy teeth, they can lead to considerably more serious issues for someone who has a crown. Why? The natural enamel of your teeth is significantly more resistant to these substances than a crown is.

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Which Habits Have Benefits for Dental Crowns?

Employ a Night Guard

A night guard helps defend your teeth and crowns if you often grind your teeth at night. It accomplishes this by creating a separation between the bottom and top teeth, eliminating regular grinding from wearing down the enamel and crowns material. Additionally, by doing this, you can avoid your crown popping off as a result of prolonged grinding.

Even if you don’t believe you clench your teeth, it’s still necessary to discuss this with your dentist to see whether you need to wear a mouth guard. When you grind your teeth, your dentist may notice indicators such as damaged enamel and teeth that seem to be flattened, cracked, or chipped for no apparent cause.

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Learn to Floss While Wearing a Crown

It’s crucial to floss every day especially while having a crown. To safeguard your crown and achieve the best results, it must be done in a certain way. Slide the floss along the edges of the crowns and the adjacent teeth in a C shape. Avoid tugging and snapping since doing so might unintentionally knock the crown off.

Regularly Visit Your Dentist

See your dentist for routine checks twice a year if there is a crown on your tooth. Additionally, if you feel sensitivity, pain, or discomfort near your crown, you should consult your dentist. This might indicate that the crown is too high on the molar or has gotten loose.

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How to Take Care of Dental Crowns?

Your dental crown has to be cleaned using toothpaste at least two times a day, just like natural teeth. Avoid using toothpaste containing abrasives since this may quickly harm the skin of the crown.

Knowing that plaque may accumulate on crowns, just like it does on normal teeth, cleaning is crucial when teeth are replaced with them. Crowns should be meticulously cleaned on a regular basis.

Bridges and crowns must be maintained with interdental brushes and threads. Crowns are best cleaned with a traditional brush with larger side bristles. They can be employed to clean your crown’s edges and bridges.

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Use mouthwash, which has the primary benefit of killing germs. These liquids can be used to clean places that are challenging for a toothbrush to access. After all, maintaining the oral cavity as a whole is just as important as maintaining the teeth.

Taking good care of your dental crowns is important for your overall dental health. Make sure to follow your dentist’s instructions. If you have questions or concerns about dental crowns, contact us to schedule a consultation.