What Is That Paste Used to Polish Teeth?

Dentistry in Streetsville is a Mississauga dental clinic that provides professional individual and family dental services. We also strive to provide dental education in the form of information, usually designed to answer the Frequently asked questions that often arise from patients in the dental chair

One of the questions asked our dentists is about something patients rarely consider until it happens: What the heck is that polish that gets applied at the end of a dental hygiene appointment? The vital polishing procedure is usually done using a slowspeed hand piece with a rotating soft rubber cup on the tip. The cup is filled with prophylaxis paste, a toothpaste-like substance with a mildly gritty texture. The paste is applied after a full dental cleaning to give teeth their just-polished shine. The types of abrasives in our prophylaxis polishing pastes can vary, but usually contain a mixture of things like flour of pumice, aluminum oxide, silicon carbide, calcium carbonate, possibly some flavouring oils and other helpful substances, including fluoride. While a good polishing does have the ability to remove very mild stains from a tooth’s surface, it is not part of an actual dental scaling process.

Another question often asked is this: What is the best kind of dental floss to use when flossing? We believe that an unwaxed woven dental floss usually provides the best flossing action. This is primarily due to its strength and the fact it is thicker than a typical thin ribbon of dental floss.

At Dentistry in Streetsville, there is ample opportunity to get an education in dental services just by posing your questions to any of our dentists, the dental hygienists or our super-helpful administrative staff. We will all be more than happy to help you. You can book your next appointment by visiting Dentistry in Streetsville online at www.dentistryinstreetsville.com. Visit our office at 100 Queen Street South, Suite 101, in Mississauga, or call us at 905-821-8221. Also, visit us on Facebook and Instagram at DentistryInStreetsville.