The secret to good oral health is literally within the grasp of most individuals.
Brushing your teeth is the best preventive maintenance.
When a leading consumer advocacy publication polled its readers about their oral health habits — good and bad — it found that consistent brushing and flossing were among the factors that help maintain excellent oral health.
When nearly 52,000 readers of Consumer Reports weighed in on a variety of dental issues, the results also showed that those who regularly take care of their teeth and gums also tend to have dental insurance.
The magazine’s survey, published in the February issue, also found that, “few readers reported experiencing anything beyond mild pain–even for the infamous root canal.”
The survey also helped highlight the No. 1 reason why respondents delayed dental care–cost. Even those with dental insurance sometimes didn’t seek treatment if they had already used up the maximum coverage in their yearly insurance plan, or because insurance wouldn’t cover the procedure.
Like any health issue, few improve when they’re ignored. And the Consumer Reports survey also found another important side effect of putting off treatment, whether for fear of pain or cost:
Readers who delayed getting care were less satisfied with their dental work than those who got prompt care.
The magazine also compared the types of dental insurance and found that dental HMOs have “the most generous coverage and usually place no annual limit on the care your receive.”
Western Dental Services, Inc., one of the largest dental HMOs in California, and also operates in Arizona and Nevada, offers low-cost insurance plans, even to patients without perfect credit.
Western Dental Tips & Hygiene Health 