It had been quite a while since your last dental visit, and this one found three cavities and some other potential issues that may need to be addressed, or at least followed up on in the future. You were encouraged by your dentist to make an appointment for a six-month checkup, but now you’re trying to determine whether it’s even worth it.
After all, even though you hadn’t been to see a dentist in 19 years, three cavities isn’t a big deal, at least in your way of thinking. You might be in your 30s, 40s, or even your 50s and don’t see the benefit to visiting your dentist every six months, especially given your somewhat relatively good checkup last time.
Various oral health problems can begin to arise the older a person gets. The amount of processed foods that people consume today erodes their teeth. So can smoking, drinking coffee, drinking soda, and a wide range of other foods and beverages.
Just because you might have had only three cavities during your last checkup (the first one in almost 2 decades), it could be an indication that your oral health is not in the best condition possible.
A six-month checkup is recommended because various dental problems can arise in a short amount of time. This can include gum disease.
Plaque, bacteria, and other issues can build up within a matter of weeks or months. Even if you brush your teeth, floss, and rinse with mouthwash twice a day, as recommended, plaque will continue to build up simply because a toothbrush isn’t enough to remove all of the food and bacteria on it. This can lead to gingivitis.
If you don’t think a regular dental checkup is necessary, consider the alternative: if your gum, bone, or root health is compromised in any way, it could lead to a loss of teeth relatively quickly. If that happens, you could end up requiring a significant amount of dental work in the near future, and it could all be prevented with a regular six-month cleaning and checkup.