Do you anticipate a moderate-to-high risk of developing caries for yourself or your family members? A professional fluoride treatment can help. Usually fluoridated water, use of tooth pastes containing fluoride and nutritional fluoride supplements are the sources for fluoride for your teeth. Fluoride is helpful for teeth because it helps protect against tooth decay, repairs weak spots that could become cavities on the surface of the tooth and reduces pain and discomfort caused by tooth decay. Fluoride treatments are recommended every three, six or 12 months.

A fluoride treatment is a simple procedure taking only a few minutes and is usually done as the last step of a cleaning process. The fluoride preparation used in the dental office is a much stronger concentration than that in toothpastes or fluoride mouthrinses. It may be available in various forms like solution, gel, foam or varnish. Typically, a cotton swab or brush is used to apply it or sometimes it is used as a rinse or placed in a tray that is held in the mouth for several minutes. You should not eat or drink anything for at least 30 minutes after the treatment, to allow the teeth to absorb the fluoride and help repair microscopic carious areas.