Fluoride Treatment

After a dental cleaning, or a dental checkup, our office may recommend a fluoride treatment for your teeth. Contrary to common knowledge, fluoride is not just for children with non-permanent teeth. Even though good oral hygiene is created from regular brushing, flossing, and regular visits to the hygienist (for cleaning and plaque removal), this is not always enough to keep bacteria from damaging healthy enameled.

Fluoride treatment can make up the difference. The fluoride provided to you by our office is just a concentrated form of the same fluoride found in drinking water and nationally in the environment. Small amounts of fluoride are also present in mouth wash, and certain toothpaste formulations. Using fluoride to help prevent tooth decay is not a new idea, but has been used for many decades in both pediatric and adult dental care. It’s a proven treatment. While most people can benefit from regular fluoride applications, it is especially helpful to patients with the following experiences or conditions;

• teeth root exposure
• junk food diets
• dry mouth condition
• alcohol and drug use
• eating disorder
• overall poor dental hygiene

Treatment is in our office is painless and generally takes just a few minutes. The concentrated solution is applied to your upper and lower teeth. There is no ill taste and in fact, it comes in a few pleasing flavors. We recommend that you do not eat or drink colored liquids for at least 30 minutes to allow the fluoride to set. For certain problem conditions, multiple yearly treatments may be recommended. Ask your dentist if fluoride treatments are the right fit for your current dental situation.