The past few weeks have brought about significant change in many industries. From our favorite restaurants shutting down to jobs being worked from home – there is no person in Vancouver who has not experienced a dramatic shift in their life from COVID-19.
One of the early changes in our state was to shut down dental offices for anything but emergency procedures. This decision made it possible to conserve PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) for those working on the front-lines in our hospitals, as well as helped to keep our staff safe. However, we recognize that this decision by our state has a direct impact on your dental care when you are asked to stay home and forego regularly schedule dental cleanings.
In order to make sure you are able to stay on track with your dental care while we are unable to provide in-person dental cleanings, we have a few recommendations for you to keep your mouth healthy during this time away.
Don’t Change Your Brushing Routine
We know that life looks a bit different these days. You may be waking up a bit later. Wearing pajamas, sweatpants or other comfy clothes more often than your dress shirts. You may even be trying your hand at cutting your own hair. With social distancing, you may be less worried about how your breath smells. After all, your dog is the only one close enough to smell it, and their breath is always worse than yours.
But don’t allow yourself to slack off when it comes to oral care. In fact, since you can no longer easily get into our office, it is more important than ever that you keep up with your brushing schedule. Don’t forget to brush your teeth when you wake up, after you eat meals and before you go to bed.
Go Electric
Have you been considering buying an electric toothbrush but haven’t taken the plunge yet? Money might be tighter, but expensive dental care will cost more in the long run. There are several benefits to an electric toothbrush that will be especially helpful during this time where you may be missing your regular cleanings.
- Two minute timer so you actually brush for the recommended time
- People are less likely to overbrush or use a negative brushing motion when using an electric toothbrush
- More effective at removing plaque buildup – especially important when you can’t have plaque professionally removed.
For more information check out Dr. Bowyer’s blog post on the electric toothbrushes vs. manual toothbrushes.
Go Beyond Brushing
We know that you sometimes slack when it comes to flossing (yes, we can tell if its not part of your regular routine). But when you are missing regular cleanings and checkups, adding diligent flossing to your routine can greatly benefit your oral health.
Flossing just once a day can help clean your between your teeth and remove food particles that your toothbrush can’t reach. If it’s been awhile since you’ve pulled out your dental floss, take a look at Dr. Bowyer’s Essential Tips for Flossing to brush up on technique.
Stay in Touch
We aren’t sure for certain when our office will be allowed to go back into normal operations. Rest assured that when we are given the all-clear to get back to seeing non-emergency patients we will be taking all the precautions to keep both you and our staff safe.
We know that there are many things you will want to do once we are out of lockdown – from going back to your favorite watering hole to exploring all of our area parks. But don’t forget to take care of your oral care that may have been neglected during this time.
Email us to schedule an appointment for after May 19th (the current date when the Governor has allowed us to go back to work). If our services are closed longer than anticipated, we’ll be happy to help you reschedule.
We are looking forward to the time where we can get back to serving the Vancouver community. Until then, please stay healthy and keep brushing those teeth!