Dental hygiene is crucial to maintain good health, as diseases in your mouth can spread bacteria throughout your entire body and weaken your immune system just by swallowing. Brushing and flossing are excellent ways to keep your mouth healthy and prevent diseases from forming in your mouth or elsewhere. This removes the main part of bacteria forming in your mouth and helps preventing issues caused by bad oral hygiene from occurring. However, there are more things you can consider apart from just the acts of brushing and flossing to make sure your oral hygiene is as good as possible. 

Fluoride

Fluoride is a substance that can help you prevent problems with your teeth if used in careful amounts. In many areas, fluoride is applied to the drinking water to make sure the inhabitants of the area are exposed to a healthy dose of fluoride consistently. If you live in an area without water fluoridation however, you might want to consider including it more into your everyday life apart from the fluoride you get from toothpastes and mouthwash. Talk to your dentist about having a fluoride wash applied to your teeth during your next visit, as this will make your lack of water fluoridation insignificant.

Toothbrush

Brushing your teeth is very important, but it's also important to remember that the toothbrush as an object has a lot to do with how important tooth brushing really is. You should make sure to change your toothbrush often. You should change it before you see any wear or discolouration to the bristle. If toothpaste residue is starting to build up on the neck of the toothbrush, this is also an indication that you should change it. You should also ask your dentist about special toothbrushes in case you are suffering from arthritis or other diseases that makes it hard for you to use a toothbrush. Different types of electrical toothbrushes might help you to still be able to brush your teeth properly.

After eating

You should make sure to clean your teeth after every meal. This does not mean that you should brush your teeth after every meal. Brushing your teeth after you've eaten can actually hurt the enamel on your teeth and cause more bad than good. Instead, you should make it a habit to rinse your mouth with some sort of antibacterial fluid after eating, to get rid of harmful particles that can harm your mouth. You could also chew gum directly after eating, as this increases the saliva flow in your mouth with washes bacteria away naturally. Just make sure you're chewing gum without sugar, as this could become contra productive and harm your teeth.