Working From Home? Keep Brushing On Time

Raise your hand if this has happened to you. While working from home during the pandemic, you’ve looked over at the clock on your laptop and realized it’s afternoon and you haven’t eaten breakfast! Worse yet, since your normal routine of commuting to work has been interrupted, you haven’t even brushed your teeth! This scenario is all too easy to fall into given the new normal this year, and we certainly won’t judge you for forgetting to eat. However, we want to encourage patients to pay special attention to their new schedules and how that relates to brushing habits.

Working From Home Can Be Disorienting

It’s no secret and you’ve likely figured it out by now, but working from home can be disorienting. This is especially the case if you’re stuck in your home office or the kitchen table for hours on a video conference. For those used to the normal routine of working in the office, changing to working from home every day can be a challenge. Often there is no rush to perform your normal routine right when you wake up because you’ll be home all day. Are you putting off that morning shower until much later? So is a good chunk of the country. Don’t sweat it. However interrupting other parts of your routine can have harmful consequences.

Keep Your Brushing Routine Solid

It has never been easier to forget about brushing in the morning. And while you’re putting off brushing, you’re likely drinking fluids that are harmful for your teeth. If you’re on that third cup of coffee and the clock has rolled over to the afternoon, you’ve exposed your teeth to a lot of acid over a good period of time. The same goes for that glass of orange juice in the morning. You forget to brush and that acid sits on your teeth for far too long. If you engage in the same behavior day after day, your teeth could be taking a real hit.

Stay On Time And Drink Water

Nothing is better than catching a few extra ZZZ’s right now since you don’t have to battle the morning commute. But if you need to be at your desk or laptop for the rest of the workday, we still recommend leaving time for a routine similar to when you went into the office. Start by waking up and brushing your teeth right away or right after your morning shower. Then if you’re ready for coffee or breakfast, do it after you brush. Refrain from brushing right after breakfast or coffee and juice since you can spread the acid around and actually push it deeper into your teeth.

It is just as important to drink water throughout the day. Not only can regular hydration fight dry mouth and potential oral health problems, it will wash harmful acids off your teeth so they can’t damage your enamel. And when we say water, we mean H2O! Drinking sparkling water in moderation is fine for your teeth, but just like coffee, you should try to drink it in a small window of time and swish with water to remove the acids afterward.

Don’t Forget About Homeschool

We’ve been talking about adult work routines thus far, but your children can be impacted by the change to remote learning as well. You’ll want to ensure your kids adhere to a similar routine of brushing their teeth when they get up in the morning. You don’t want them to neglect their brushing schedule just because they are not going into the classroom right now. This will help prevent cavities and keep their developing teeth healthy.

Final Thoughts On Working From Home

Whether you love working from home and you never want it to end, or you’re ready for this madness to be over, we encourage you to keep your brushing habits like they were before the pandemic. This means brushing once in the morning and once at night as well as flossing once per day. The same goes for dental checkups. Don’t ignore those reminders that you need to come in for a routine cleaning. Your dentist is able to catch any problems before they become more severe. If you’re overdue for a checkup or ready to discover a safe, friendly environment focused on cleanliness, we encourage you to contact Grace & Leedy Family Dentistry today.