The area you live can affect your mouth in a number of different ways:
- Your town or city could determine how difficult it is to access dental care.
- The cost of living, combined with differences in household income, may give you more challenges when it comes to affording products or services to look after your mouth.
- If you live in a rural area, geographical isolation could mean less support for your oral health.
- Your region may or may not have fluoride added to the water supply, changing your odds of having tooth decay – In Wales there is no Fluoride in the water so make sure you have toothpaste containing it and ‘spit don’t rinse’ so it has the best effect on your teeth.
Where you live also might change how you care for your mouth.
Research by the Oral Health Foundation suggests that some areas of the UK have different oral health routines and practices than other. Our findings show:
- People in the North East are best in the UK at brushing their teeth twice a day (73%), while people from Scotland are worst (62%).
- Those from London claim to use mouthwash (61%), dental floss (45%) and sugar free chewing gum (25%) regularly – more than anywhere else in the UK.
- People in Northern Ireland are least likely to regularly use mouthwash (46%), dental floss (26%) and sugar free chewing gum (3%).
- Those from London are more likely to own an electric toothbrush (62%), compared to the rest of the UK.
No matter where you live, do your best to cover the basics of looking after your oral health.
If you need help, you can speak to your local dental team for advice or get in touch with dental health.org charity’s Dental Helpline. Their team can give you support and information for anything to do with your oral health.
