{"id":1049,"date":"2019-09-13T19:45:41","date_gmt":"2019-09-13T19:45:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/?p=1049"},"modified":"2019-10-04T19:45:55","modified_gmt":"2019-10-04T19:45:55","slug":"why-and-how-you-should-clean-your-tongue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/why-and-how-you-should-clean-your-tongue\/","title":{"rendered":"Why and How You Should Clean Your Tongue"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"woman<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Have you ever thought about how much your tongue actually\ndoes? Without it, you wouldn\u2019t be able to taste your favorite foods, whistle\nyour favorite song, or tell someone about your day. That\u2019s why, according\nto your dentist<\/a>, it\u2019s important to not only brush and floss your teeth, but\nto clean your tongue as well. Let\u2019s take a closer look at why and how you\nshould clean your tongue every day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Why Do You Need to Clean Your Tongue?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You may have heard that if you don\u2019t brush and floss,\nbacteria can build up on your teeth and in your gums. The same thing happens\nwhen you don\u2019t clean your tongue. The surface of your tongue is covered with\nlittle bumps called papillae, where food particles, dead skin cells, and\nbacteria can collect. When these things build up, it can cause halitosis, or\nbad breath. Additionally, bacteria on the tongue can redeposit on the gums and\nteeth, so even after you brush there\u2019s still a chance of plaque buildup. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Do You Clean Your Tongue Properly?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are two main ways of cleaning your tongue: brushing\nand scraping. After brushing your teeth but before rinsing, gently scrub your\ntongue from back to front with your moistened toothbrush. It\u2019s important to go\nback to front so you don\u2019t accidentally swallow any bacteria being cleared\naway. For extra cleanliness, brush the roof of your mouth and the inside of\nyour cheeks as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you really want to go the extra mile, you could buy a\ntongue scraper. You can find these at most drugstores. They\u2019re designed to\nglide across the surface of your tongue and remove the layer of bacteria on the\ntop if it. To use them, stick your tongue out and gently slide it from the back\nof your tongue to the front. Rinse the scraper off and repeat until the whole\nsurface of your tongue is clean. Then, clean and dry the tongue scraper, and\nbrush and floss as you normally would. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What If Cleaning Your Tongue Makes You Gag?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you have a sensitive gag reflex, cleaning the back of\nyour tongue may present a challenge. You might have to clean your tongue slowly\nto allow yourself time to grow accustomed to the situation. One trick that may\nbe helpful is to relax your tongue while fully exhaling when touching a\nsensitive part. Breathing out usually overrides the gag reflex and allows you\nto touch the back of your tongue with no worries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you can see, cleaning your tongue is important for your\noral health, just like brushing and flossing. Make sure to add it to your daily\ndental hygiene routine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Author <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dr. J. Peter St. Clair is a graduate of Tufts University\nSchool of Dental Medicine and has been practicing in Rowley, MA since 1996. He is\nalso a current Faculty Club Member at the prestigious Spear Education Institute.\nFor more dental hygiene tips, contact Dr. St.\nClair on his website<\/a> or call (978) 948-2030. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have you ever thought about how much your tongue actually does? Without it, you wouldn\u2019t be able to taste your favorite foods, whistle your favorite song, or tell someone about your day. That\u2019s why, according to your dentist, it\u2019s important to not only brush and floss your teeth, but to clean your tongue as well. Let\u2019s take a closer look at why and how you should clean your tongue every day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1049","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1049","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1049"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1049\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1050,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1049\/revisions\/1050"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1049"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1049"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jpeterstclairdentistry.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1049"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}