Dental health is one of those things that most of us like to sweep under the rug as much as possible, only to regret that when it comes back to bite us later. There is a lot that can go wrong if you neglect your teeth, and sometimes issues that would normally be very cheap and quick to fix can snowball into very expensive procedures that require multiple visits and a lot of follow-up work. Paying attention to your dental health and hygiene from an early age is important, not just because of its immediate effects, but also because it will help you avoid some very unpleasant expenses down the road.
Dental Coverage Is Often Tricky
You never know when you might be covered for a certain procedure. This varies from one insurance company’s policy to the next, and it also depends on the specific dentist you want to use. Even if you have a good dental plan, you can never be too sure that you’re covered against major problems. It’s not pleasant at all to be informed that you have to go through an expensive procedure that you’ll have to pay out of your own pocket. And when you factor in the additional care afterwards, things can get messy quite fast.
Nipping Issues in the Bud
Some problems are also much easier to address when you’re still young and your body is developing. Take braces for example – straightening your teeth can be much more complicated later on in your life and may require some very expensive procedures. Some younger people are concerned about how something like this would impact them while the procedure is still ongoing.
Don’t worry though – not only are invisible braces relatively true to their name, but the average clear brace cost in the UK is not that high either, especially if you work with a provider like Straight My Teeth, a company with significant experience in the field and a proven track record of satisfied patients. Straight My Teeth offer invisible braces as well as night-time aligners if this is something you would prefer. The sooner you look into addressing these problems, the less they’ll bother you in the future.
You Can Save Yourself a Lot of Money and Pain with a Little Attention
Many dental procedures can be quite expensive, and those costs can add up the more you continue to ignore them. Addressing these problems early on is not just about saving yourself pain, but also money. You will still have to spend something to fix those problems now, sure – but considering how much more you might have to pay a few years down the road, it’s definitely worth it.
The pain is not something you should ignore either. What could be a simple, effortless procedure now, might turn out to be a painful ordeal that requires multiple visits later. If you get to the point where you need a tooth extraction, things can get messy very fast. Think about your recovery afterwards as well. When you’re older, the additional pain and fatigue that comes with that can hit you much harder.
How Often Should You Get Checked Up?
All that said, what’s a reasonable frequency for getting your teeth checked out by a dentist? Like most things related to health, this will depend on your own specific circumstances, but ideally, you should be going 2-4 times a year. Your dentist might recommend a different schedule, especially if you have problems that require constant monitoring. But going more frequently than that by default is generally a waste of your time if nothing came up during your last visit. If you have concerns about that, talk to your dentist and let them know.
On the other hand, don’t take this to the other extreme – just because nothing serious has come up in recent years, doesn’t mean that you should skip your next visit to the dentist. Just go in, and the process will likely be quick and effortless if nothing new has come up. But if there is a new issue you weren’t aware of, catching it early will likely save you a lot of money, as we described above.
This is never a fun thing to talk or think about, but it’s part of being a responsible adult. Even if you don’t care that much about your smile, you should still avoid incurring any significant hits to your bank account. Finding yourself in need of a lot of dental work is one of the quickest ways to go about that. Even if you have a good insurance plan, you may still end up paying a lot out of your own pocket, especially if your problem could have been prevented with more frequent care in the first place. Don’t underestimate this and take matters into your own hands while you’re still in full control over them!