Brushing for Two: Why Good Oral Health Helps Your Baby #smilefearlessly

This oral health post was created in partnership with Smile Brilliant. I was not financially compensated for this post but did receive a sample for review purposes. As always, all opinions are entirely my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support me!

When you’re a mom-to-be, you have to sacrifice a lot of your body to that mission. During pregnancy, you may fully concentrate on your little bun’s wellbeing and totally forget about the ‘oven’, meaning yourself.

Remember that caring for yourself throughout pregnancy means caring for your unborn baby as well — that’s especially the case as far as your oral health is concerned. In other words, looking after your mouth’s health is good for your baby, both prior and after birth.

So don’t hesitate to visit a trusted dental provider as soon as you find out that you’re preggers. He will examine and evaluate your current oral health, offering you a solid dental plan to follow over the next few months.

Read on to find out how your oral health can influence your baby’s health.

Causes of Dental Conditions in Expecting Moms

Pregnancy doesn’t damage your teeth by default. The old wives’ tale warning you of sacrificing a tooth for every baby you bring into this world is pure exaggeration. However, even though a lot of women go through pregnancy with little to no dental discomfort, pregnancy really can aggravate some existing medical conditions — or even cause new ones. As such, it is important to compile a list of reputable clinics like emergency dentistry catoosa that you can drop by in case you need some urgent dental care.

Upon reading this post, you will realize how vital good oral hygiene is, especially when you’re pregnant. But first and foremost, we will let you in on some of the most common causes of dental conditions in expecting mothers.

Find them below.

• Morning sickness. This pregnancy symptom can play a cruel joke on your dental health. Stomach acid travels to your oral cavity, eating away at the enamel on your teeth (i.e. contributing to the development of cavities).
• Frequent snacking. Because you usually eat more frequently during pregnancy, your teeth come into non-stop contact with acids present in food, thus weakening your tooth enamel.
• Irregular brushing and flossing. We know you’re exhausted by the time you go to bed. However, if you skip your before-bedtime brushing and flossing ritual, this will ultimately cause major teeth issues.
• Multiple hormones produced during pregnancy. Pregnancy triggers hormonal changes which, in their turn, can make your gums sensitive to plaque, as well as other nasty gum diseases.
• Chewy/gummy pregnancy vitamins. Pregnant women need folic acid-containing vitamin supplements to maximize their unborn child’s health. When purchasing a vitamin supplement, avoid opting for sticky texture. Sugar rich sticky and chewy vitamins will cling to your ivories and eventually do serious damage to them — particularly if you take those vitamins after your tooth brushing routine.

The Connection Between Your Oral Health & Your Baby’s Health

When you’re pregnant, your oral health is closely linked to your precious baby’s health — and it’s all about the bacteria in your oral cavity. The thing is, according to the relatively recent research, increased bacteria’ population’ in your mouth can even indirectly trigger preterm labor.

Furthermore, when the baby is born, mom can transmit her bacteria to the baby. If that’s something you don’t want to do, you should pay extra attention to your mouth, teeth, and gums — before, during, and post-pregnancy.

Regular Brushing Helps Ward off Pregnancy Complications

Cutting to the chase, if you brush and floss your teeth on a regular basis, you will protect yourself from suffering potentially severe pregnancy complications and prevent future oral infection in your newborn.

Opt for a toothpaste that contains fluoride, engage in brushing your teeth at least twice a day, and do not skip flossing.

Last but not least, don’t forget that a balanced diet will keep your oral cavity healthy and well-protected. Make sure your meals are rich in calcium and avoid foods containing sugar.

Opt for an Electric Toothbrush Instead of Manual

Every dentist will tell you that brushing with an electric toothbrush is way more effective than manually scrubbing your teeth. Why you ask?

Think about it.

You can only move your hand so fast whereas an electric toothbrush like the cariPRO™ Ultrasonic toothbrush provides 40,000 vibrations/minute. This means it can remove up to 7x more plaque—making your teeth whiter and your gums healthier.

The cariPRO™ Ultrasonic toothbrush is made by Smile Brilliant. You’ve probably heard of them and their amazing teeth whitening kits, and now they are looking to be your overall oral care solution with electric toothbrushes.

We love how the cariPRO™ Ultrasonic toothbrush gives you five different brushing modes to choose from.

• Clean
• White
• Massage
• Gum Care
• Sensitive

Each brushing mode is designed to operate for two minutes, with brief pauses between each 30-second burst. That brief pause tells you to move to a different quadrant of the mouth.

In the past, we’ve used other popular electric toothbrushes and to be honest, we couldn’t always tell a difference between their brushing modes. With the cariPRO™ Ultrasonic toothbrush, there is a distinct difference between each mode—they are all very different.

This is great and means, for example, if you want whiter teeth, the white brush mode is faster than the other modes so it polishes your teeth better. On the other hand, the gum care brushing mode has varying pulses to get your gum extra clean. Each mode functions in a different way to provide your teeth with a specialized experience depending on what you want to do. It’s amazing!

Our next favorite part is that it’s waterproof! I don’t know about you but I like to brush my teeth in the shower. The cariPRO™ Ultrasonic toothbrush is a game-changer and means I can use a top of the line toothbrush in the shower instead of a regular old manual. And, since this electronic toothbrush has a great battery life lasting up to 4 weeks, I don’t have to constantly be charging it.

We are in love with this electric toothbrush, and it should be part of your pregnancy oral hygiene routine!

Never let visiting your dentist disappear from your pregnancy to-do list. Not only can you have all the procedures done, but your dental provider can assist you with any dental conditions caused by pregnancy. This also includes your worries inside your mind like, “Can I get retainers without braces?”

Remember, when an expecting mom is brushing her pearly whites, she’s brushing for two!

Use code homejobsbymom20 to get 20% off cariPRO Ultrasonic electric toothbrushes today!