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Dr. Mike Recommeds

One of the things that is always in the media these days are studies suggesting that diet and exercise are important to maintain a healthy life-style. What many, if not all, of these studies ultimately conclude is that the better you eat and the more regularly you exercise, the healthier you will become and the lower your risk for many medical problems. What these studies do not suggest is that you need to take it to the extreme and start running marathons, doing extreme workouts or not eating any sweets or carbs at all. They suggest a level that is comfortable and maintainable so that it leads to a healthy life-style.

As I was writing the article for this month’s newsletter I was reflecting on how these kinds of studies relate to dentistry and oral health. As I was reflecting I realized that what we do for our patients is to try and encourage a healthy mouth-style (mouth-style is a word I made up myself) in the same manner. We want our patients to achieve a level of oral health that is comfortable, functional and maintainable. In the way that exercise and diet contribute to a healthy life-style, brushing and flossing contribute to a healthy mouth-style. And the important point is that you don’t need to go to extremes with your mouth either.