There are many factors that lead to tooth decay, not just lack of brushing and flossing. Some of the most important ones are diet, dietary habits such as frequency of carbohydrate consumption, pH balance, and the type of bacteria that you have in your mouth (often inherited at a young age from parents/caregivers).

So how can we improve the bacterial balance and move it towards healthy bacteria, and away from the ones that cause cavities? We need to raise the pH (make it more alkaline) by using high pH rinses. This takes several months to achieve. The ones we highly recommend are from a brand called CariFree. We sell them at cost in our practice for our active patients, due to the many benefits they have. This rinse system has been studied extensively at Universities the the U.S. (including Harvard!), and have been shown to reduce tooth decay by up to 74%.

For more information on cavity prevention, check out the info in our ebook here: https://eauclaireparkdental.ca/ebooks/

This short video with Dr. Graas also explains how to prevent cavities: