Pregnancy & Dentistry: What to know

During pregnancy, your teeth and gums can sometimes become quite sensitive & sometimes even bleed. This is because the hormonal changes to your body during pregnancy can make your teeth/gums more susceptible to plaque which in turn leads to inflammation. Keeping your teeth and gums healthy during pregnancy is very important and if you carry on your regular tooth brushing for 2 minutes morning & night your plaque levels will be greatly reduced.

You can reduce your plaque build up and in turn reduce your gum sensitivity by avoiding sugary drinks (such as fizzy drinks or sweet tea/coffee) and sugary foods too often – try to keep them to meal times.

Along with your regular dental check ups, brushing twice daily with regular flossing you can help to ease any sensitivity or swollen gums, if you are really concerned about your oral health please contact your dentist who will be happy to help.

Dental treatments to avoid in pregnancy

At your check up if your dentist discovers you need a filling, we can usually delay it until after your baby has been born, but if you’re happy to have your dental treatment whilst pregnant there is no reason why you can’t have your dental treatment whilst pregnant.

The dental X-rays we take, do not affect the abdomen or pelvic area but if you are due to have dental radiographs your dentist will wait until after the baby has been born and schedule to take the X-rays when you return for your routine check up.