Is it necessary to get polishing & fluoride treatment at the dentist?

Post date: 2021-05-04 12:09:49

You're not my dentist, but after my most recent visit dental cleaning (today) I couldn't help but wonder if it's actually necessary/beneficial to actually get the polishing & fluoride treatments during dental appointments? My dental insurance doesn't cover either and I'm wondering if they're something I can skip.

When it comes to my teeth, they're fine. I don't have very many cavities and I don't get cavities very often. I have saliva that's high in calcium (iirc), so I get a lot of tartar build up on my teeth. Despite how much I floss, it still happens.

I don't think my dental coverage has ever paid for polishing and certainly has never paid for fluoride (which is about $40), yet I get them every time I go to the dentist for a cleaning. I've never thought about it before until today, not sure why. I just thought it was something that I was supposed to do, so I never questioned it. Is it actually worthwhile to keep paying for these treatments? Can I skip them without causing much harm to my teeth? What's the consensus?

(Also, I think what's causing me to ask this question is that my dentist recently sold his office to a chain of dental clinics. Good for him, he's a nice guy, but I'm a little more wary of what they are pushing on me there now. But I've always had polishing/fluoride done.)

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