About 3.5 billion people are affected by oral diseases and in a lot of cases people leave them untreated. Perhaps it’s the high cost of dental work and the fact that it’s not usually a part of health coverage that doesn’t make it a priority for people. Yet, before we reach the stage where there is a problem, there are things we could be doing to try and keep our teeth as healthy as possible.

Now we gathered a few tips and facts about our teeth that might give you a good idea of what is best for them.

1. Brushing your teeth after breakfast might make them more sensitive.

If you’ve ever felt a sudden sharp pain as you eat something hot or cold, this might show that your teeth are overly sensitive. Tooth sensitivity can happen for a variety of reasons, and one of them is weak tooth enamel. Since brushing your teeth immediately after eating certain foods can increase tooth sensitivity, it’s better to prevent this unpleasant side effect and brush your teeth before eating.

2. You’re brushing too hard if your gums start to recede.

Each and every one of our teeth are protected by enamel, which can be severely harmed due to over-brushing. And by harming enamel, our gums may start to recede, exposing the roots of our teeth to great danger. If your teeth reach that point, you might need to root canals, add fillings, or even extract teeth that are no longer healthy. As per dentists, about 10%-20% of the population around the world has damaged their gums due to over-brushing.

3. Your diet plays a huge role in your teeth’s health.

If you can change your eating habits and switching to a healthy diet, this always helps boost your health, no matter what your goal is. According to a study published in The British Medical Journal, a change in diet can actually reverse tooth decay. We already know that the consumption of products rich in sugar causes teeth decay. However, if you change your eating habits, you may never face such a problem.

Get more calcium. It’s the main building component of your bones and teeth. Eat dairy products every day (milk, yogurt, sour cream, and cheese).

Drink unsweetened beverages. Avoid drinking juices, sodas, and fizzy drinks. You can try fruit smoothies, simple water, and unsweetened tea. Water has a lot of good impacts on your body including increased hydration and a higher flow of saliva.

4. Use kaolin clay for whitening

Just apply the kaolin clay on your teeth and brush them well with a toothbrush. Don’t use much pressure, do it gently. Next rinse your mouth with clean water.

5. Add supplements and vitamins to your diet.

We’ve already discussed eliminating sweets and candy from your diet, but there’s one more thing you can do to help your saliva fight dental plaque. Vitamins are essential for establishing the good health of your teeth.

Eat whole-grain foods. They contain a lot of iron and vitamin B. Additionally, whole grains contain magnesium, a mineral that helps absorb calcium and strengthen your teeth.

Eat seafood more often if you want to get more vitamin D from your meals. Salmon, tuna, herring, and mackerel are great sources of vitamin D.

6. Make sure your toothpaste is low-abrasive

We need our toothpaste to be abrasive enough in order that it does its job and cleans our teeth as it should. Yet, high abrasive toothpaste does more than that and removes the enamel from our teeth. Rather than reading labels and searching to see how abrasive the ingredients are, there is another trick you can use.

Just take a piece of foil and rub a small amount of your toothpaste on it. Next rinse it with plenty of water and see if there are any scratches left on the foil. The number of scratches will show just how abrasive the toothpaste is.

7. Chewing sugarless gum is good for you.

While it might sound ironic, chewing sugar-free gum can actually help you prevent tooth decay. As you chew, your mouth fills with saliva that can naturally wash off food remains, neutralize acids, strengthen tooth enamel, and fight diseases.

8. It’s better to hold your toothbrush with only 3 fingers.

Holding your toothbrush like a pen will allow you to apply the right pressure to your teeth. This is because you can easily control the force you’re putting on your hand. When you hold your toothbrush with your fist, on the contrary, you can easily lose track of your force and overbrush. It’s not the pressure that will clean your teeth — the bristles have to be able to get in between all the teeth, removing plaque and other bacteria.