Gum Disease.
Remember.
1)
Once your gums have receeded, they have receeded
for good. They never come back.
2)
If you don’t clean your teeth properly, a denture will only make matters worse.
What causes Gum Disease?
Gum disease is caused by poor or non-existent cleaning. This leaves a substance
called plaque on the teeth. Plaque is a soft furry substance consisting of
bacteria and old food. If left on the teeth and gums for long periods, the bacteria
produce poisons that cause the gums to swell and bleed. At this stage little
damage has been done and starting to clean the teeth properly will make the
gums healthy again. If not, the gums start to come away from the teeth and form
a pocket between the gum and the tooth. This pocket fills with plaque but your
toothbrush will not fit into the pocket to clean it out. The 
poisons then cause the bone that holds
the teeth to shrink back and the teeth start to loosen. Plaque that is left on
the teeth also hardens to form Tartar that can be seen on the photos. This
forms a barrier, which prevents efficient tooth brushing and speeds up the
destruction of the gum. As can be seen in the picture below, the bone
supporting the teeth is destroyed and the teeth can become loose and
painful.
The only way to prevent gum disease is correct and thorough oral
hygiene. Many people thing that if their gums bleed, they are brushing too hard
so they brush less to compensate. This is wrong, it just allows more plaque to
form and hence more gum inflammation. All surfaces of the teeth should be
cleaned thoroughly 
down to the
gum line, ignoring any bleeding. This will go away once the teeth are kept
clean. The best method is to place the bristles of the brush against the tooth
surface with the ends pointing slightly towards the gum edge then roll the head
of the brush so that the bristles sweep away from the gum and push slightly
into the spaces between the teeth. Floss should also be used to clean these
spaces.
How to clean your teeth properly.