To be fed up with getting told off every time I go to the dentist?

[ElderAve]

I'm 50 this year and I don't have any fillings. There's nothing wrong with my teeth. I eat a balanced diet hardly any sweets and no fizzy drinks (main because I've never liked them). I'm also probably just a bit lucky with my teeth.

I brush regularly but find flossing really uncomfortable so rarely do it. I see the hygienist three times a year to get rid of any build up.

Every time I go to the dentist or the hygienist, I get another lecture about brushing and flossing. I know technically it's just advice but the tone is definitely "telling off".

Really, I'm a 50yo adult who's teeth are in remarkably good condition, I can't be getting it that badly wrong. And if I do have any failings, I pay these people handsomely to deal with it!

Actually, by this stage in life, I'm not at all convinced such regular visits are necessary, but obviously no dentist is going to tell me that.

Found that v interesting and useful, bitesizedsnacks.

I think it was a very interesting explanation and certainly makes me feel better about my plaque........cwhich I work very hard to reduce.

Water picks may help a little, but you need a very powerful jet to disrupt a biofilm
I would also like to thank you for taking the time to post Bitesized:)
I take your point here but I use my waterpik 3 x daily with salt (saline concentration) water I feel as if this does good work and when I used plain water sometimes it would hurt my gums whereas the salt version is pain free

Thankyou for that explanation Bitesized.
I havnt been to the Dentist for years because of the Hygenist.
I have ordered a water flosser and will be returning to the dentist now following your excellent post. As I am quite phobic I am in too much of a state to take the ‘ telling off’ so will explain that at reception.
What a shame myself and so many others feel so humiliated by the Hygienist at our practices.

Oh thank you for your kind words, and I'm really pleased some found it a helpful explanation.

I agree waterpiks are more environmentally friendly @Squiz81, and that certainly is a big issue with interdental brushes – they can be re-used, but over time the bristles become less effective, and as anyone who uses them knows they are prone to bending. Recently some bamboo brushes have come out thehumble.co/interdental/ which partly address this issue, but they are expensive, and only partially biodegradable. I think the dental companies are working on it though, as it is an increasingly important concern. Floss is also an issue environmentally, but again some companies are also starting to produce biodegradable versions.

@UTScuti I’m not against waterpiks per se, it’s just the evidence out there for them is quite weak. My take on them is that they may well be enough to disturb the biofilm sufficiently to stop the inflammation in some people, but it’s difficult to recommend them when interdental brushes have a much more robust evidence base. But if you’re using one, and your gums don’t show signs of inflammation and your dentist can’t detect any signs of gum disease, it’s probably doing the trick. And salt is a wonder for healing in mouths – it promotes healing and inhibits bacteria (dentists recommend warm salt water after tooth extraction to help healing) - so it’s really interesting to hear you find saline useful in your waterpik– it sounds like it’s doing good! This page has quite a good summary on the use of salt - drjohnfagbemi.co.uk/dental-hygiene-rinse-with-salt-water/

@Cameron2012 I agree it is such a shame people have felt humiliation and other negative emotions when visiting somewhere that should be helping them, and I really hope your next visit is a more positive experience.

thanks for the link Bitesized, my feeling is that the salt water is just kinder to the tissues in the mouth (and that is supported by the article) but that in itself would surely help to keep things happier and less prone to inflammation?
I know more effort should be made with inter-dental brushes and I will, but it feels very scary trying to get them between my tightly packed back teeth, even the tiniest ones

No problem @UYScuti – as you say saline doesn’t irritate the tissues so I can’t see that it could be doing harm, and indeed may well be doing good. You’re not the only one to be scared by inter-dental brushes – there is a real knack to using them, and it can be terrifying when it feels like they’ve got stuck! (I speak from experience) It’s worth asking your dentist/hygienist/dental therapist to advise what size to use, and give you some help with the technique – they should take the time to do this - and with lots of practice, it does get easier. They should also be happy to repeat the technique with you as many times as you need, and some will even record videos for you on your phone to help at home.

For others contemplating interdental brushes, another big issue is that using them on inflamed gums can make them feel sore, and can produce a lot of bleeding. So understandably people stop using them, because it feels like they are damaging their gums. Whereas if they carried on the inflammation would gradually resolve (because the biofilm is being disturbed), and the brushes will become less and less painful to use, until eventually they don’t cause any pain or bleeding – this is a good sign they’re working.

Another problem to mention is that when the inflammation dies down, the gum often shrinks (because the inflammation causes swelling of the gums, and this often masks the actual loss of attachment that has happened between the gum and the tooth). With this shrinkage, gaps may appear that weren’t there previously. However, as a specialist said, in his opinion it’s ‘better to be long in the tooth, than have a tooth no longer’, and thankfully there are treatments that can address any cosmetic issues this may cause.

The British Periodontal Society has some interesting videos including this one www.bsperio.org.uk/periodontal-disease/sound-of-periodontitis.html about gum disease from a patient’s perspective.

Gum disease is closely linked to risk of getting alzheimers / dementia

please listen to the dentist

Gum disease is closely linked to risk of getting alzheimers / dementia

There is an association but it could just be that people with dementia dental hygiene difficult. They don't know that gum disease causes Alzheimer's.

no one is claiming that gum disease causes Alzheimer's it's more the case that there is a link /connection between gum disease and Alzheimer's
in other words if gum disease is present it's an indication that Alzheimer's may also be present or likely to happen in the future, we do not know the exact nature of the link but there seems to be a link
If your gums are inflamed and infected your brain may also be at risk.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5649154/
Abstract
Periodontitis is an oral chronic infection/inflammatory condition, identified as a source of mediators of inflammation into the blood circulation, which may contribute to exacerbate several diseases. There is increasing evidence that inflammation plays a key role in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Although inflammation is present in both diseases, the exact mechanisms and crosslinks between periodontitis and AD are poorly understood. Therefore, this article aims to review possible comorbidity between periodontitis and AD. Here, the authors discuss the inflammatory aspects of periodontitis, how this oral condition produces a systemic inflammation and, finally, the contribution of this systemic inflammation for worsening neuroinflammation in the progression of AD.
Keywords: Alzheimer disease, amyloid beta-peptides, dementia, inflammation, neurodegenerative diseases, neurofibrillary tangles, periodontal diseases, periodontitis

no one is claiming that gum disease causes Alzheimer's it's more the case that there is a link /connection between gum disease and Alzheimer's

I think that saying that there is a strong link and therefore people need to pay attention to their dentist does suggest that gum disease may be a potential risk factor . Therefore, I think it is worth making the point that the link may be due Alzheimer's increasing the risk of gum disease rather than the other way around.

Prime example of this is that annoying current advert with the dentist in her lecturing tone, 'It's NOT going to go away. You NEED to do something about it.'

Bog off.

Oral bacteria is often isolated from joint and heart infections. When you don't clean properly and disrupt the biofilm, the bacteria leaks into your blood stream.

Get the flossie sticks or inter dental brushes. Of course they'll give you advice about looking after your teeth, that's they're job, they're dentists ! Just don't worry about it so much .

I have chronic gum disease which is genetic and incurable, this has damaged the bones supporting my teeth. I was also a child in the 1970s where teeth were heavily filled and dental health information non existent. I have ALWAYS looked after my teeth, brushed and flossed and seen the hygienist every three months. Endured dozens of scoldings and humiliations by dental hygienists. During one of my pregnancies my gum disease because so much worse that I was actually hospitalised for a whole month and given transfusions as my gums were bleeding so heavily. Following that particular experience in which I actually nearly died and was left deeply tramatized I went to the dental hygienist when my baby was about 3 months old to be scolded by a nasty young woman who having heard the story of what had happened to me in hospital a few weeks ago, and when I politely asked if gums were setting down a bit after the trauma I'd been through as I'd been trying so hard to get back to normal rudely replied "Not really your gums are in a very bad state and there's been substantial bone loss for someone of your age". I went home and cried my eyes out. I never went back to them. I went to see my lovely GP shortly after this incident who advised that I had been through a post traumatic stress and needed to find a different dentist asap. I now see a wonderful dentist who does laser treatment and microbiology and has helped my gum disease enormously. In fact they are a specialist clinic who I have to travel quite some distance to and I've had to pay privately for the treatment, I have had to go without holidays and other things to pay for it but do you know what, I do it willingly, because despite what that nasty young woman said to me all those years ago I am deeply committed to my oral health and always will be. My current dentist have restored my oral health and my mental health as well. The dental hygienist I see there is lovely and couldn't be more knowledgeable in her field. They have explained to me that there was absolutely NOTHING more that I could have done that I hadn't already been doing due to the chronic and severe form of genetic gum disease that I have.

Phew, that was cathartic

I'm so glad everything came good for you in the end OldGrinch😊
unbelievably traumatic, must have been terrifying😟
you deserve perfect oral and mental health✊😊

Thank you so much @UYScuti. Interestingly the wonderful dentists I have now are not British trained but European. A totally different approach and they are light years ahead in regards to the research they are doing and their approach to looking after their patients.

I go to a dentist where you can see different people

When I moved here, the first dentist ranted at me so much, then I asked “but is there anything wrong?”

She said, “no, but I like to rant at people so the message really gets through”.

I went to pay my bill at reception and said “if everyone here is like that, I’ll have to leave, who else do you have?” Ended up with a much nicer lady.

I need to find me some of these enlightened European dentists 😁😁😁

They are called the IMI clinic and they have centres in Leeds, Manchester and London, I couldn't recommend them highly enough, they have amazing technology such as lasers that can kill all the bacteria that lie under your gums which you could never reach yourself with even an electric toothbrush.

are there any eco friendly alternatives to the interdentals? I don't like to make single use plastic part of my daily routine.

I wanted to say that I finally plucked up the courage to visit a new dentist and they were very polite and professional and I didn't get told off once!! It made me realise how stressful I found my old dentist, so I am very pleased I changed. I left NOT feeling like a useless piece of shit whose teeth were about to crumble and fall out of her mouth. In fact he said my teeth were fine.